Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $2.71 Million Stock Position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Lazard Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 19.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,721 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 7,745 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in CF Industries were worth $2,706,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Korea Investment CORP raised its stake in shares of CF Industries by 88.5% in the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 150,374 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $12,830,000 after acquiring an additional 70,585 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service grew its holdings in CF Industries by 2,848.4% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 290,384 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $24,776,000 after purchasing an additional 280,535 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of CF Industries in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,792,339 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $494,202,000 after buying an additional 225,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 171,807 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $14,543,000 after buying an additional 21,632 shares during the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of CF Industries from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on CF Industries from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of CF Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of CF Industries from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $81.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of CF Industries in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $86.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $90.21.

CF Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CF traded up $1.82 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $89.74. 1,550,471 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,134,792. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 3.08. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $77.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $83.43. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.34 and a 12 month high of $98.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.21 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.94.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.52% and a return on equity of 15.50%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the basic materials company to repurchase up to 14.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. CF Industries's payout ratio is presently 26.35%.

About CF Industries

CF Industries Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of hydrogen and nitrogen products for energy, fertilizer, emissions abatement, and other industrial activities in North America, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Ammonia, Granular Urea, UAN, AN, and Other segments.