CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (CF) to Distribute Quarterly Dividend of $0.50 on May 31st

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 18th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of 0.50 per share by the basic materials company on Friday, May 31st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%.

CF Industries has raised its dividend by an average of 10.1% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. CF Industries has a dividend payout ratio of 35.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect CF Industries to earn $5.92 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 33.8%.

CF Industries Stock Performance

NYSE:CF opened at $79.47 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $81.43 and its 200-day moving average is $79.74. CF Industries has a 52-week low of $60.08 and a 52-week high of $87.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 3.44 and a current ratio of 3.81. The company has a market cap of $14.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.14, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.03.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The basic materials company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.12). CF Industries had a return on equity of 18.44% and a net margin of 23.00%. The company had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.35 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 39.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that CF Industries will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at CF Industries

In other news, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $510,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,030 shares in the company, valued at $5,442,550. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CF Industries

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CF. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in CF Industries by 101.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,014,385 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $342,026,000 after buying an additional 2,017,325 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in CF Industries by 221.8% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,825,115 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $204,793,000 after purchasing an additional 1,947,268 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in CF Industries in the fourth quarter worth $159,602,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in CF Industries by 68.1% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,498,650 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $108,637,000 after purchasing an additional 607,200 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in CF Industries by 54.4% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,577,503 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $114,353,000 after purchasing an additional 555,898 shares during the period. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Berenberg Bank upped their target price on shares of CF Industries from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler cut shares of CF Industries from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $87.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of CF Industries from $98.00 to $97.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $99.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $88.00 target price (down previously from $96.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.47.

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.