CF Industries (NYSE:CF – Get Free Report)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating restated by equities researchers at Scotiabank in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $82.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $81.00. Scotiabank’s target price indicates a potential downside of 1.00% from the stock’s previous close.\n\nA number of other equities research analysts have also commented on CF. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on CF Industries from $108.00 to $101.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised CF Industries from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on CF Industries and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Barclays boosted their price target on CF Industries from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on CF Industries from $103.00 to $101.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.77.\n\nCF Industries (NYSE:CF – Get Free Report) opened at $82.83 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $13.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 2.84. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $93.48 and its 200-day moving average is $85.29. CF Industries has a one year low of $67.34 and a one year high of $104.45.\n\nCF Industries last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.73 billion. CF Industries had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 20.19%. CF Industries’s revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.30 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that CF Industries will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.\n\nCF Industries announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to reacquire up to 14.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.\n\nIn other CF Industries news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.23, for a total value of $1,002,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 87,923 shares in the company, valued at $8,812,522.29. This represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.\n\nSeveral institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CF. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of CF Industries by 8,352.8% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,451,338 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $113,422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,434,168 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in CF Industries by 72.8% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,278,354 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $178,053,000 after buying an additional 959,901 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its position in CF Industries by 72.1% during the second quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,728,927 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $159,061,000 after buying an additional 724,329 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in CF Industries during the second quarter worth approximately $63,104,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in CF Industries by 29.4% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,804,718 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $239,299,000 after buying an additional 637,784 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company’s stock.\n\nCF 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.

Scotiabank Reaffirms Sector Perform Rating for CF Industries (NYSE:CF)

Scotiabank has reaffirmed its 'sector perform' rating on CF Industries (NYSE:CF), maintaining a price target of $82.00, up slightly from $81.00. Other analysts have adjusted their ratings and price targets, with Wells Fargo lowering its target to $101.00 and raising its rating to 'overweight', JPMorgan Chase upgrading to 'neutral' and increasing its price target to $92.00, Morgan Stanley maintaining a $95.00 target with 'equal weight', Barclays raising its target to $95.00, and UBS cutting its target to $101.00 with a 'neutral' rating. The stock closed at $82.83 on Monday, with a market cap of $13.42 billion, P/E ratio of 10.81, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. CF Industries reported Q2 earnings of $2.37 EPS, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $1.89 billion and a 20.2% year-over-year increase. The company announced a $2.00 billion stock repurchase plan authorized on May 7th, allowing repurchase of up to 14.7% of its shares. Executive Vice President Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares at $100.23, reducing her ownership by 10.21%. Institutional investors including Pacer Advisors, Bank of New York Mellon, Allianz Asset Management, Virginia Retirement Systems, and Ameriprise Financial increased their positions in the company during recent quarters.