Candriam S.C.A. Sells 5,942 Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Candriam S.C.A. decreased its position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) by 35.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,695 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,942 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in CF Industries were worth $984,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CF. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in CF Industries by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,040,601 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,644,323,000 after purchasing an additional 319,343 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 4.5% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,055,283 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $473,220,000 after purchasing an additional 262,944 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of CF Industries by 4.4% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,708,643 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $446,130,000 after buying an additional 240,756 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its holdings in CF Industries by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,623,708 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $283,169,000 after buying an additional 307,092 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in CF Industries by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,275,464 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $255,977,000 after buying an additional 470,746 shares during the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CF Industries Stock Down 5.1%

Shares of CF opened at $80.68 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $86.11 and its 200 day moving average is $88.79. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.34 and a 12-month high of $104.45. The company has a market capitalization of $12.58 billion, a PE ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 0.89.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $2.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.19% and a return on equity of 17.10%. The company’s revenue was up 21.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.55 EPS. Research analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. CF Industries’s payout ratio is presently 24.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CF shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of CF Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $96.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Barclays raised shares of CF Industries from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on CF Industries from $78.00 to $86.00 in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on CF Industries from $100.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.64.

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.