CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) Shares Purchased by James Investment Research Inc.

James Investment Research Inc. boosted its holdings in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) by 61.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 15,430 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 5,896 shares during the quarter. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in CF Industries were worth $1,206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FMR LLC boosted its stake in CF Industries by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,830,621 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $753,429,000 after purchasing an additional 543,876 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,425,518 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $377,585,000 after purchasing an additional 150,461 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its holdings in CF Industries by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,316,616 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $283,044,000 after acquiring an additional 216,395 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in CF Industries by 29.4% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,804,718 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $239,299,000 after acquiring an additional 637,784 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 72.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,278,354 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $178,053,000 after purchasing an additional 959,901 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

CF Industries Stock Performance

Shares of CF stock opened at $95.93 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $16.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.64 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 2.22. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $92.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.34. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $67.34 and a one year high of $104.45.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.53 billion. CF Industries had a net margin of 21.80% and a return on equity of 17.39%. CF Industries’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 EPS for the current year.

CF Industries declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the basic materials company to purchase up to 14.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.35%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.23, for a total transaction of $1,002,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 87,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,812,522.29. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CF. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of CF Industries to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 target price on shares of CF Industries and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of CF Industries from a “sector underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $81.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $105.00 target price on shares of CF Industries and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CF Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $92.79.

CF Industries Profile

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.