Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the five brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $26.00.

Several research analysts have recently commented on CMP shares. Compass Point set a $30.00 target price on Compass Minerals International in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen lowered Compass Minerals International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Compass Minerals International from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research lowered Compass Minerals International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Compass Minerals International from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CMP. Gumshoe Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Compass Minerals International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $24,842,000. Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. boosted its position in Compass Minerals International by 201.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. now owns 1,280,648 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,728,000 after purchasing an additional 856,149 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Compass Minerals International by 4,579.9% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 776,303 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,247,000 after purchasing an additional 759,715 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Compass Minerals International by 379.4% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 522,108 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,024,000 after purchasing an additional 413,205 shares during the period. Finally, Engine Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Compass Minerals International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $7,529,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.78% of the company’s stock.

Compass Minerals International Price Performance

CMP stock opened at $29.37 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 2.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.60. Compass Minerals International has a 52-week low of $16.40 and a 52-week high of $32.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $24.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.33. The company has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a PE ratio of 195.80 and a beta of 1.18.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $453.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $418.97 million. Compass Minerals International had a return on equity of 8.99% and a net margin of 0.55%.Compass Minerals International’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.63 EPS. Analysts predict that Compass Minerals International will post 0.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Compass Minerals International

Compass Minerals International, Inc is a global producer of essential mineral-based products, primarily known for its salt and plant nutrition portfolios. The company’s deicing salts are used by municipalities and commercial customers across North America to maintain safer roadways in winter months. In addition, its water conditioning salts serve both residential and industrial users, supporting water treatment systems that remove hard minerals to protect plumbing and equipment.

Beyond conventional salt products, Compass Minerals has developed a specialty plant nutrition business focused on sulfate of potash (SOP), a premium fertilizer that provides both potassium and sulfur to crops.