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Wells Fargo & Company Boosts CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Price Target to $150.00

CF Industries logo with Basic Materials background
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Key Points

  • Wells Fargo raised its price target on CF Industries to $150 (from $113) with an "overweight" rating, implying about a 15.52% upside and sitting well above the street average target of $99.33.
  • CF beat quarterly estimates with $2.59 EPS (vs. $2.53) and revenue up 22.8% year-over-year, yet the stock traded down to $129.85 amid volatility; market cap is about $19.95 billion and the 52-week range is $67.34–$137.44.
  • Supply shocks tied to the Iran conflict have boosted fertilizer prices and CF's margins, but the company faces political/regulatory risk after a Senator accused it of price-gouging and insiders sold roughly 47,118 shares (≈$5.28M) recently.
  • Interested in CF Industries? Here are five stocks we like better.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $113.00 to $150.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the basic materials company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target suggests a potential upside of 15.52% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $72.00 price target on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of CF Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, December 14th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of CF Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of CF Industries from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Mizuho set a $95.00 price target on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $99.33.

Check Out Our Latest Report on CF Industries

CF Industries Trading Down 4.5%

CF stock traded down $6.16 during trading on Friday, reaching $129.85. 3,140,905 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,417,519. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.43 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 3.37 and a quick ratio of 2.93. The business's 50 day moving average price is $94.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $87.29. CF Industries has a 52-week low of $67.34 and a 52-week high of $137.44.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.06. CF Industries had a return on equity of 19.84% and a net margin of 20.54%.The company had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.89 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 22.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CF Industries will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Richard A. Hoker sold 6,184 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.33, for a total value of $676,096.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 34,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,775,711.55. This represents a 15.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 7,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.00, for a total transaction of $799,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 73,803 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,192,133. The trade was a 8.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 47,118 shares of company stock valued at $5,280,588. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of CF Industries

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CF. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in CF Industries by 2.1% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,982,072 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $734,351,000 after purchasing an additional 165,833 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in CF Industries by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,013,846 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $449,742,000 after purchasing an additional 480,126 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of CF Industries by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,312,225 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $333,501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,516 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of CF Industries by 15.3% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,587,999 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $321,852,000 after purchasing an additional 476,769 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,570,249 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $276,123,000 after buying an additional 381,716 shares during the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CF Industries News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting CF Industries this week:

CF Industries Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a leading global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products for agricultural and industrial customers. The company specializes in the production of ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), nitric acid and ammonium nitrate, which serve as key inputs for fertilizer blends, industrial chemicals and other downstream applications.

Headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, CF Industries operates production facilities and distribution terminals across North America and the United Kingdom.

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Analyst Recommendations for CF Industries (NYSE:CF)

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