Castleark Management LLC Acquires Shares of 129,150 CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Castleark Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 129,150 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,769,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Himension Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. purchased a new position in shares of CF Industries in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in CF Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. WPG Advisers LLC raised its position in CF Industries by 69.8% in the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 552 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. Finally, MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in CF Industries in the second quarter worth about $44,000. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of CF Industries from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of CF Industries from $94.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Freedom Capital raised CF Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on CF Industries from $140.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $116.69.

CF Industries Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of CF stock opened at $125.20 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $114.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $111.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 3.54 and a quick ratio of 3.15. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.42 and a 1 year high of $141.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.25 and a beta of 0.40.

CF Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is a boost 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 presently 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.