CF Industries Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:CF)

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders acquired 9,109 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 64% compared to the average volume of 5,547 put options.

Insider Transactions at CF Industries

In other news, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $510,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,442,550. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CF Industries

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 18,942 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,635,000 after purchasing an additional 1,636 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 926.1% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 183,711 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,751,000 after purchasing an additional 165,808 shares during the period. Comerica Bank increased its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 133.8% in the 3rd quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 54,551 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,677,000 after purchasing an additional 31,215 shares during the period. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,627,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates grew its stake in shares of CF Industries by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 133,439 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,608,000 after buying an additional 27,027 shares in the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on CF shares. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $88.00 price target (down from $96.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays upgraded shares of CF Industries from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 12th. UBS Group cut shares of CF Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $83.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of CF Industries in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut shares of CF Industries from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $87.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.47.

CF Industries Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CF opened at $79.47 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.81, a quick ratio of 3.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.74. The firm has a market cap of $14.92 billion, a PE ratio of 10.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.03. CF Industries has a 12-month low of $60.08 and a 12-month high of $87.90.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The basic materials company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.12). CF Industries had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 18.44%. The business 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 earned $4.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 39.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that CF Industries will post 5.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.52%. CF Industries’s payout ratio is currently 25.51%.

CF Industries Company Profile

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.