Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Grows Position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) by 110.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,225 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,420 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in CF Industries were worth $955,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CF. Curat Global LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 119.8% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 114.1% in the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 379 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CF has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research lowered shares of CF Industries from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of CF Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of CF Industries from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $75.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $82.00 target price (down previously from $93.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas cut shares of CF Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 87,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,812,522.29. This represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

CF Industries Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of CF opened at $84.63 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.71 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05 and a beta of 0.95. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $67.34 and a 1 year high of $104.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a current ratio of 3.22. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $89.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.21.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.73 billion. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.19% and a return on equity of 17.10%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.30 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.11%.

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.