OLD Second National Bank of Aurora Cuts Stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

OLD Second National Bank of Aurora lowered its holdings in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,915 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 920 shares during the quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora’s holdings in CF Industries were worth $1,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. purchased a new position in CF Industries during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Clear Street Markets LLC grew its holdings in CF Industries by 92.5% during the 1st quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 385 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in CF Industries during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in CF Industries by 428.6% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 370 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in CF Industries during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CF Industries news, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 6,000 shares of CF Industries stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total transaction of $510,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 64,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,442,550. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

CF Industries Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE:CF traded up $2.59 on Thursday, reaching $80.39. The company had a trading volume of 1,302,248 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,494,808. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $60.08 and a 52-week high of $87.90. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $81.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.77. The company has a current ratio of 3.81, a quick ratio of 3.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.09 billion, a PE ratio of 9.92, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.03.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The basic materials company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.12). CF Industries had a return on equity of 18.44% and a net margin of 23.00%. The business had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.35 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 39.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.49%. This is a boost from CF Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. CF Industries’s payout ratio is currently 25.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CF has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays raised CF Industries from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 12th. Berenberg Bank raised their price objective on CF Industries from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group lowered CF Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $83.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $88.00 price target (down from $96.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on CF Industries in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $99.00 price target for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CF Industries has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $87.94.

About CF Industries

CF Industries Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of hydrogen and nitrogen products for energy, fertilizer, emissions abatement, and other industrial activities in North America, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Ammonia, Granular Urea, UAN, AN, and Other segments.