Q2 2024 EPS Estimates for Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. Lowered by Zacks Research (NYSE:CLF)

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q2 2024 earnings estimates for Cleveland-Cliffs in a research note issued on Monday, May 6th. Zacks Research analyst A. Barman now expects that the mining company will post earnings per share of $0.14 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $0.47. The consensus estimate for Cleveland-Cliffs’ current full-year earnings is $1.22 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Cleveland-Cliffs’ Q3 2024 earnings at $0.30 EPS, Q4 2024 earnings at $0.27 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $0.90 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.49 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.44 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.51 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $2.28 EPS.

CLF has been the subject of several other research reports. Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $18.00 price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. B. Riley cut their price target on Cleveland-Cliffs from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. TheStreet downgraded Cleveland-Cliffs from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Cleveland-Cliffs from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cleveland-Cliffs currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.42.

Cleveland-Cliffs Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE:CLF opened at $17.45 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.14. Cleveland-Cliffs has a fifty-two week low of $13.61 and a fifty-two week high of $22.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.30 billion, a PE ratio of 23.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 2.10.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 22nd. The mining company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.01). Cleveland-Cliffs had a return on equity of 8.69% and a net margin of 1.78%. The business had revenue of $5.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.11) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Cleveland-Cliffs declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, April 22nd that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the mining company to buy up to 17.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Cleveland-Cliffs

In other Cleveland-Cliffs news, Director Arlene M. Yocum bought 2,000 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $20.02 per share, for a total transaction of $40,040.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 94,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,899,637.74. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Arlene M. Yocum bought 2,000 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.02 per share, with a total value of $40,040.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 94,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,899,637.74. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Lourenco Goncalves sold 187,136 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.19, for a total transaction of $3,778,275.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,699,089 shares in the company, valued at $54,494,606.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 87,000 shares of company stock worth $1,470,640 and sold 221,066 shares worth $4,464,688. 1.76% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Korea Investment CORP increased its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 30.6% during the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 514,890 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $8,048,000 after acquiring an additional 120,540 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 240.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,988,689 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $31,083,000 after buying an additional 1,404,491 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,970,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 29.4% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 554,022 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $8,659,000 after buying an additional 125,884 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP bought a new position in Cleveland-Cliffs during the 3rd quarter worth $475,000. Institutional investors own 67.68% of the company’s stock.

Cleveland-Cliffs Company Profile

Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest flat-rolled steel company and the largest iron ore pellet producer in North America. The company is vertically integrated from mining through iron making, steelmaking, rolling, finishing and downstream with hot and cold stamping of steel parts and components. The company was formerly known as Cliffs Natural Resources Inc and changed its name to Cleveland-Cliffs Inc in August 2017.