Sciencast Management LP Makes New Investment in The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS)

Sciencast Management LP purchased a new position in shares of The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 22,663 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $557,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MOS. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in shares of Mosaic by 190.8% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,593,914 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,178,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045,812 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mosaic by 44.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,218,410 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $86,189,000 after buying an additional 986,812 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in shares of Mosaic by 40.6% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 3,279,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $87,817,000 after buying an additional 947,500 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Mosaic by 2.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,351,351 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $228,018,000 after buying an additional 178,844 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in shares of Mosaic by 171.4% in the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 282,331 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,561,000 after buying an additional 178,293 shares during the period. 77.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on MOS. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Mosaic from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Mosaic from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Mosaic from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday. CIBC began coverage on shares of Mosaic in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Mosaic from $40.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mosaic has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.67.

Mosaic Stock Performance

Shares of MOS stock opened at $27.83 on Friday. The Mosaic Company has a 12 month low of $22.48 and a 12 month high of $33.44. The stock has a market cap of $8.82 billion, a PE ratio of 24.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $26.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.16.

Mosaic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. Mosaic’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 160.00%.

About Mosaic

The Mosaic Company, through its subsidiaries, produces and markets concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients in North America and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Phosphates, Potash, and Mosaic Fertilizantes. It owns and operates mines, which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients, such as diammonium phosphate, monoammonium phosphate, and ammoniated phosphate products; and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients primarily under the Biofos and Nexfos brand names, as well as produces a double sulfate of potash magnesia product under K-Mag brand name.