Norges Bank Invests $131.35 Million in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,539,503 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $131,350,000. Norges Bank owned about 0.88% of CF Industries as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CF. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries during the fourth quarter worth approximately $74,000. Korea Investment CORP raised its position in CF Industries by 88.5% in the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 150,374 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $12,830,000 after purchasing an additional 70,585 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its holdings in CF Industries by 2,848.4% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 290,384 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $24,776,000 after buying an additional 280,535 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in CF Industries in the 4th quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of CF Industries by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,792,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $494,202,000 after buying an additional 225,109 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

CF Industries Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE:CF opened at $78.11 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 3.08 and a quick ratio of 2.52. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $82.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.15. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $69.13 and a fifty-two week high of $98.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.24 billion, a PE ratio of 11.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.99.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.40. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.52% and a return on equity of 15.50%. The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CF shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of CF Industries from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of CF Industries from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $75.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America raised shares of CF Industries from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $84.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. UBS Group cut their price target on CF Industries from $92.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on CF Industries from $114.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at CF Industries

In related news, VP Ashraf K. Malik sold 8,889 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $844,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 15,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,507,745. This trade represents a 35.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $142,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 93,986 shares in the company, valued at $8,928,670. This trade represents a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,889 shares of company stock valued at $1,130,955 in the last 90 days. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About CF Industries

CF 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.