Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF - Get Free Report) shares gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $20.85, but opened at $19.92. Cleveland-Cliffs shares last traded at $19.31, with a volume of 6,367,132 shares changing hands.

The mining company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.34 billion. Cleveland-Cliffs had a net margin of 1.81% and a return on equity of 6.79%. The business's revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.11) earnings per share.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CLF has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Argus downgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a "b-" rating to a "c" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $22.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cleveland-Cliffs currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $19.92.

Insider Transactions at Cleveland-Cliffs

In related news, Director Susan Miranda Green sold 6,500 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.40, for a total transaction of $132,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 90,286 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,841,834.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Lourenco Goncalves sold 187,136 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.19, for a total transaction of $3,778,275.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,699,089 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $54,494,606.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan Miranda Green sold 6,500 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.40, for a total transaction of $132,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 90,286 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,841,834.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 221,066 shares of company stock worth $4,464,688 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.76% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 25,053 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $570,000 after buying an additional 476 shares during the period. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 41.7% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 27,337 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $427,000 after buying an additional 609 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 216,359 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $4,249,000 after buying an additional 612 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 50.3% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,850 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the period. 67.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $8.81 billion, a PE ratio of 24.07, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 2.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.89, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $20.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.98.

Cleveland-Cliffs Company Profile

Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest flat-rolled steel company and the largest iron ore pellet producer in North America. The company is vertically integrated from mining through iron making, steelmaking, rolling, finishing and downstream with hot and cold stamping of steel parts and components. The company was formerly known as Cliffs Natural Resources Inc and changed its name to Cleveland-Cliffs Inc in August 2017.