Optas LLC Acquires New Holdings in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Optas LLC bought a new position in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 4,249 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 78.0% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 292 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in CF Industries by 396.2% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 387 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new position in CF Industries during the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Peterson Wealth Services increased its holdings in CF Industries by 451.3% during the 3rd quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CF Industries Trading Up 0.9%

CF Industries stock opened at $122.41 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $18.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.60 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $116.25 and a 200-day moving average of $95.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 3.37 and a quick ratio of 2.93. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $74.79 and a one year high of $141.96.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.06. CF Industries had a return on equity of 19.84% and a net margin of 20.54%.The business had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. CF Industries’s quarterly revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 9.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. CF Industries’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on CF Industries from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $72.00 target price on CF Industries in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded CF Industries from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Zacks Research downgraded CF Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on shares of CF Industries from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CF Industries has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $116.87.

Insider Activity at CF Industries

In other news, SVP Michael Patrick Mcgrane sold 3,666 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.50, for a total value of $427,089.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,232,256.50. This represents a 16.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 18,041 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.06, for a total transaction of $2,454,658.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 55,762 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,586,977.72. This represents a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 82,408 shares of company stock worth $9,971,298. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

CF Industries Profile

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a leading global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products for agricultural and industrial customers. The company specializes in the production of ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), nitric acid and ammonium nitrate, which serve as key inputs for fertilizer blends, industrial chemicals and other downstream applications.

Headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, CF Industries operates production facilities and distribution terminals across North America and the United Kingdom.