The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) Stock Rated “Hold” by Sell-Side Brokerages

The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-two brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $27.06.

Several brokerages have issued reports on MOS. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on Mosaic in a research report on Friday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. HSBC reduced their price target on Mosaic from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on Mosaic in a report on Thursday, September 10th. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Mosaic from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Freedom Capital lowered Mosaic from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th.

Mosaic Price Performance

MOS stock opened at $18.72 on Tuesday. Mosaic has a 12 month low of $18.68 and a 12 month high of $32.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $23.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.15. The stock has a market cap of $5.95 billion, a PE ratio of -9.27, a P/E/G ratio of 5.31 and a beta of 0.91.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.01. Mosaic had a negative net margin of 5.21% and a positive return on equity of 3.77%. The company had revenue of $2.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mosaic will post 0.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Mosaic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 10th were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 10th. Mosaic’s dividend payout ratio is -43.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mosaic news, SVP Walter Precourt, III sold 23,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.12, for a total value of $508,760.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 116,198 shares in the company, valued at $2,570,299.76. This trade represents a 16.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mosaic

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Riversedge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mosaic in the 3rd quarter valued at about $201,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Mosaic by 38.0% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 21,460 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $465,000 after acquiring an additional 5,914 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Mosaic by 136.3% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 15,352 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 8,854 shares during the period. Plan A Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Mosaic by 4.0% during the third quarter. Plan A Wealth LLC now owns 16,105 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 620 shares during the period. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Mosaic by 10.2% during the third quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 61,736 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,337,000 after acquiring an additional 5,724 shares in the last quarter. 77.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Mosaic

The Mosaic Company is a global producer and marketer of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients. Its products are used by farmers to support plant growth, improve yields and replenish essential nutrients in agricultural soils. Mosaic also produces phosphate-based animal feed ingredients and other crop nutrition products.

Mosaic operates an integrated business that includes mining, processing, manufacturing and distribution. Its phosphate operations are primarily located in the United States, while its potash operations include mining assets in Canada and the United States.