CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Given "Neutral" Rating at Bank of America

Bank of America restated their neutral rating on shares of CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Free Report) in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a $88.00 target price on the basic materials company's stock, down from their prior target price of $96.00.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays upgraded CF Industries from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and set a $85.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, January 12th. UBS Group lowered CF Industries from a buy rating to a neutral rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $83.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on CF Industries from $98.00 to $97.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Piper Sandler lowered CF Industries from a neutral rating to an underweight rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $87.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on CF Industries in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set an outperform rating and a $99.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CF Industries has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $89.56.

CF Industries Stock Down 0.3 %

CF stock traded down $0.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $80.87. 3,303,921 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,519,315. The company has a current ratio of 3.81, a quick ratio of 3.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. CF Industries has a 12-month low of $60.08 and a 12-month high of $87.90. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $81.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $80.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.03.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The basic materials company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.12). CF Industries had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 18.44%. The firm had revenue of $1.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.35 earnings per share. CF Industries's revenue was down 39.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that CF Industries will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

CF Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This is an increase from CF Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is 25.51%.

Insider Transactions at CF Industries

In other news, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $510,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 64,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,442,550. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CF Industries

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $193,145,000. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 101.0% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,014,385 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $342,026,000 after buying an additional 2,017,325 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 221.8% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,825,115 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $204,793,000 after buying an additional 1,947,268 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $160,475,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 34.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,213,654 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $447,019,000 after buying an additional 1,329,677 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company's stock.

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.