Janus Henderson Group PLC Acquires 54,737 Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) by 304.4% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 72,716 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 54,737 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in CF Industries were worth $9,444,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Himension Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. bought a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in CF Industries by 46.3% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 493 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CF Industries during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. WPG Advisers LLC raised its stake in CF Industries by 69.8% during the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 552 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in CF Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on CF shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of CF Industries from $94.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Zacks Research cut shares of CF Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Berenberg Bank lifted their target price on CF Industries from $86.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Freedom Capital upgraded CF Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on CF Industries from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, CF Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.69.

CF Industries Stock Down 1.9%

NYSE CF opened at $115.88 on Thursday. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.42 and a 1-year high of $141.96. The company has a market capitalization of $17.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.41 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $114.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.39. The company has a current ratio of 3.54, a quick ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.63 by ($0.90). The company had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. CF Industries had a return on equity of 20.93% and a net margin of 23.73%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.37 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 15.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. This is a positive change from CF Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.97%.

About CF Industries

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.