CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.06 EPS

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.06, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.78 billion. CF Industries had a return on equity of 18.14% and a net margin of 20.47%.

CF Industries Stock Up 2.3%

NYSE CF traded up $2.12 on Wednesday, reaching $95.91. 2,759,262 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,309,719. CF Industries has a 12 month low of $67.34 and a 12 month high of $104.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.99 and a current ratio of 2.27. The company has a market cap of $14.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.56 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $85.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.96.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.10%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in CF Industries by 37.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,312,225 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $333,501,000 after buying an additional 1,178,516 shares during the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries in the second quarter worth about $96,560,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec raised its position in shares of CF Industries by 52.4% in the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 1,775,106 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $159,227,000 after acquiring an additional 610,259 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 1,904.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 514,204 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,776,000 after acquiring an additional 488,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its position in shares of CF Industries by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,587,999 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $321,852,000 after acquiring an additional 476,769 shares during the period. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on CF Industries in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. HSBC lowered their price target on CF Industries from $95.00 to $91.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of CF Industries in a report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of CF Industries from $91.00 to $86.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $88.14.

About CF Industries

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a leading global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products for agricultural and industrial customers. The company specializes in the production of ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), nitric acid and ammonium nitrate, which serve as key inputs for fertilizer blends, industrial chemicals and other downstream applications.

Headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, CF Industries operates production facilities and distribution terminals across North America and the United Kingdom.