Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $31.02 and last traded at $29.6280, with a volume of 115212 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $29.26.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Compass Minerals International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Compass Minerals International from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $20.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research lowered Compass Minerals International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Compass Point set a $30.00 price target on Compass Minerals International in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Compass Minerals International from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.00.

Compass Minerals International Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 2.06. The stock has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 200.79 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $24.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.20.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.04. Compass Minerals International had a return on equity of 8.99% and a net margin of 0.55%.The company had revenue of $453.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $418.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Compass Minerals International, Inc. will post 0.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Compass Minerals International

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in Compass Minerals International by 357.0% during the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 63,742 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,224,000 after purchasing an additional 49,793 shares during the period. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Compass Minerals International in the third quarter valued at approximately $806,000. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. O Keefe Stevens Advisory Inc. now owns 593,887 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $11,664,000 after purchasing an additional 23,860 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Compass Minerals International in the third quarter valued at approximately $422,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in Compass Minerals International by 8,417.1% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 335,061 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,433,000 after buying an additional 331,127 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.78% of the company’s stock.

About Compass Minerals International

Compass Minerals International, Inc is a global producer of essential mineral-based products, primarily known for its salt and plant nutrition portfolios. The company’s deicing salts are used by municipalities and commercial customers across North America to maintain safer roadways in winter months. In addition, its water conditioning salts serve both residential and industrial users, supporting water treatment systems that remove hard minerals to protect plumbing and equipment.

Beyond conventional salt products, Compass Minerals has developed a specialty plant nutrition business focused on sulfate of potash (SOP), a premium fertilizer that provides both potassium and sulfur to crops.