Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Price Target Cut to $9.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) had its target price lowered by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $14.00 to $9.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the mining company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price suggests a potential downside of 5.30% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on CLF. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $12.50 price objective (up from $12.00) on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Argus upgraded Cleveland-Cliffs to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Barclays assumed coverage on Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $9.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $12.10.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE:CLF opened at $9.50 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $11.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.33. Cleveland-Cliffs has a 1-year low of $7.73 and a 1-year high of $16.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.06 and a beta of 2.13.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The mining company reported ($0.40) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by $0.04. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative net margin of 6.42% and a negative return on equity of 15.48%. The company had revenue of $4.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.92) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Cleveland-Cliffs will post -0.27 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Cleveland-Cliffs

In other news, EVP Celso L. Goncalves, Jr. sold 214,308 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.41, for a total value of $2,873,870.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 184,542 shares in the company, valued at $2,474,708.22. The trade was a 53.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.95% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 152,009 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,855,000 after acquiring an additional 943 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 3.0% during the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 33,118 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $404,000 after purchasing an additional 960 shares in the last quarter. Whitcomb & Hess Inc. raised its position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Whitcomb & Hess Inc. now owns 26,752 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 973 shares during the last quarter. Rexford Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Rexford Capital Inc. now owns 9,500 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Cleveland-Cliffs by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,185 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 1,037 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.68% of the company’s stock.

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.