Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Now Covered by KeyCorp

Stock analysts at KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) in a report released on Wednesday. The brokerage set a “sector weight” rating on the mining company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on CLF. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Glj Research restated a “sell” rating and set a $9.42 price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Cleveland-Cliffs from $12.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Cleveland-Cliffs from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.59.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Up 3.6%

CLF stock opened at $8.32 on Wednesday. Cleveland-Cliffs has a 1-year low of $5.63 and a 1-year high of $16.70. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $11.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.75 billion, a PE ratio of -2.85 and a beta of 1.99.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The mining company reported ($0.43) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.62) by $0.19. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative return on equity of 18.94% and a negative net margin of 7.91%.The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.68) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cleveland-Cliffs will post -0.79 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Cleveland-Cliffs

In related news, COO Clifford T. Smith sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.46, for a total transaction of $2,092,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 560,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,863,133.34. This trade represents a 26.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Edilson Camara purchased 19,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $10.13 per share, for a total transaction of $199,561.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 41,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $425,287.79. This trade represents a 88.41% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 1.76% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 0.9% during the third quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 99,649 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,216,000 after buying an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised 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 valued at $1,855,000 after acquiring an additional 943 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 33,118 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $404,000 after acquiring an additional 960 shares in the last quarter. Whitcomb & Hess Inc. lifted 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 valued at $357,000 after acquiring an additional 973 shares during the period. Finally, Rexford Capital Inc. lifted 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 valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. 67.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.