CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold”

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of CF Industries (NYSE:CF) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Sunday morning.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of CF Industries from $96.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Bank of America upped their target price on CF Industries from $82.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. HSBC decreased their price target on CF Industries from $95.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Zacks Research cut CF Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on CF Industries from $96.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, CF Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.56.

CF Industries Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE:CF opened at $79.23 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $12.36 billion, a PE ratio of 9.55 and a beta of 0.68. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a current ratio of 2.27. CF Industries has a 52-week low of $67.34 and a 52-week high of $104.45.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.13. CF Industries had a return on equity of 18.14% and a net margin of 20.47%.The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.55 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 21.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that CF Industries will post 5.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. CF Industries’s payout ratio is presently 24.10%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CF Industries

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CF. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH bought a new stake in CF Industries during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of CF Industries by 78.0% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 292 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 396.2% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 387 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of CF Industries during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services boosted its position in shares of CF Industries by 451.3% during the 3rd quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.