Morgan Stanley Cuts Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Price Target to $12.00

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) had its price target trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $16.80 to $12.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the mining company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Argus raised Cleveland-Cliffs to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Glj Research reissued a “sell” rating and set a $9.42 price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Cleveland-Cliffs from $12.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Cleveland-Cliffs from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cleveland-Cliffs has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $11.66.

Cleveland-Cliffs Price Performance

Cleveland-Cliffs stock opened at $9.10 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.89 and a beta of 1.91. Cleveland-Cliffs has a 12 month low of $5.63 and a 12 month high of $16.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $9.41 and its 200-day moving average is $11.72.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The mining company reported ($0.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.84 billion. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative return on equity of 15.48% and a negative net margin of 6.42%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.92) earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Cleveland-Cliffs will post -0.42 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cleveland-Cliffs news, Director Edilson Camara bought 19,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $10.13 per share, for a total transaction of $199,561.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 41,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $425,287.79. This trade represents a 88.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Lourenco Goncalves sold 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.42, for a total value of $37,260,000.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its stake in Cleveland-Cliffs by 4,315.6% during the third quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,942 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 117.5% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,221 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 306.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,461 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 94.0% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 2,505 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214 shares during the last quarter. 67.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cleveland-Cliffs Company Profile

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc is a leading North American producer of iron ore pellets and flat-rolled steel products. Tracing its roots to 1847, the company has evolved from an iron-ore mining concern in the Great Lakes region into a fully integrated steelmaker. Today, Cleveland-Cliffs operates iron ore mining complexes in Michigan and Minnesota as well as steelmaking and finishing facilities across the United States.

The company’s integrated platform begins with direct control of key raw materials, including iron ore and scrap, and extends through every stage of steel production.