Vanguard Group Inc. Boosts Stake in Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. $CLF

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF) by 13.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 54,391,397 shares of the mining company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,447,462 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Cleveland-Cliffs worth $722,318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 157,985 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $2,098,000 after purchasing an additional 11,611 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 157,583 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $2,139,000 after purchasing an additional 7,715 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 23.2% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 171,824 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $2,282,000 after purchasing an additional 32,402 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Cleveland-Cliffs in the 4th quarter worth about $1,019,000. Finally, United Advisor Group LLC raised its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 35.1% in the 4th quarter. United Advisor Group LLC now owns 13,952 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $185,000 after purchasing an additional 3,622 shares during the period. 67.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CLF opened at $10.51 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.99 billion, a PE ratio of -4.49 and a beta of 2.00. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $11.58. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. has a one year low of $5.63 and a one year high of $16.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 2.02.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The mining company reported ($0.40) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.84 billion. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative net margin of 6.42% and a negative return on equity of 15.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.92) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. will post -0.42 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Cleveland-Cliffs

In related news, Director Edilson Camara bought 19,700 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $10.13 per share, with a total value of $199,561.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 41,983 shares in the company, valued at $425,287.79. The trade was a 88.41% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Lourenco Goncalves sold 3,000,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.42, for a total transaction of $37,260,000.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $10.00 price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $12.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $16.80 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $11.77.

Cleveland-Cliffs Profile

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc is a leading North American producer of iron ore pellets and flat-rolled steel products. Tracing its roots to 1847, the company has evolved from an iron-ore mining concern in the Great Lakes region into a fully integrated steelmaker. Today, Cleveland-Cliffs operates iron ore mining complexes in Michigan and Minnesota as well as steelmaking and finishing facilities across the United States.

The company’s integrated platform begins with direct control of key raw materials, including iron ore and scrap, and extends through every stage of steel production.