Phocas Financial Corp. Purchases 151,868 Shares of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. $CLF

Phocas Financial Corp. raised its position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF) by 47.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 474,862 shares of the mining company’s stock after buying an additional 151,868 shares during the quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. owned about 0.10% of Cleveland-Cliffs worth $6,306,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC raised its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 4,315.6% during the 3rd quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,942 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Cleveland-Cliffs by 819.2% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,684 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 2,392 shares in the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 72.6% in the third quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 2,768 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,164 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Cleveland-Cliffs in the second quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs during the third quarter worth $68,000. 67.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CLF has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on Cleveland-Cliffs from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Cleveland-Cliffs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Glj Research reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $9.42 price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Cleveland-Cliffs in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $9.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.99.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cleveland-Cliffs

In related news, COO Clifford T. Smith sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.46, for a total transaction of $2,092,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 560,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,863,133.34. This trade represents a 26.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Edilson Camara bought 19,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $10.13 per share, with a total value of $199,561.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 41,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $425,287.79. This trade represents a 88.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.71% of the company’s stock.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of CLF stock opened at $8.41 on Monday. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $5.63 and a fifty-two week high of $16.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.79 billion, a PE ratio of -2.88 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 1.95. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.99.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The mining company reported ($0.43) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.62) by $0.19. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative return on equity of 18.94% and a negative net margin of 7.91%.The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.68) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. will post -0.79 earnings per share for the current year.

About Cleveland-Cliffs

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.