CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.44 EPS

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by ($0.44), Briefing.com reports. CF Industries had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 18.44%. The firm had revenue of $1.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.85 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.9% on a year-over-year basis.

CF Industries Stock Performance

CF traded down $4.12 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $73.85. 2,161,590 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,423,183. The company’s 50-day moving average is $81.70 and its 200 day moving average is $79.48. CF Industries has a 52 week low of $60.08 and a 52 week high of $87.90. The company has a quick ratio of 3.44, a current ratio of 3.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.86 billion, a PE ratio of 9.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.02.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CF. UBS Group downgraded shares of CF Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $83.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on shares of CF Industries in a report on Friday, February 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of CF Industries in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $99.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $98.00 to $97.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of CF Industries from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $85.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CF Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.47.

Insider Transactions at CF Industries

In related news, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.00, for a total value of $510,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 64,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,442,550. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

CF Industries Company 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.