Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) Cut to Sector Perform at Royal Bank Of Canada

Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded shares of Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a research note published on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $25.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, down from their previous price target of $27.00.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on MOS. HSBC lowered their target price on Mosaic from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on Mosaic from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Mosaic from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Freedom Capital downgraded Mosaic from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Mizuho set a $25.00 price objective on Mosaic in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.06.

Mosaic Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MOS opened at $19.98 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $6.35 billion, a PE ratio of -9.89, a PEG ratio of 5.74 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s fifty day moving average is $23.52 and its 200 day moving average is $23.21. Mosaic has a 52 week low of $19.80 and a 52 week high of $36.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.01. Mosaic had a negative net margin of 5.21% and a positive return on equity of 3.77%. The business had revenue of $2.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.51 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Mosaic will post 0.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Mosaic Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 10th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 10th. Mosaic’s payout ratio is currently -43.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mosaic news, SVP Walter Precourt, III sold 23,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.12, for a total value of $508,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 116,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,570,299.76. This trade represents a 16.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mosaic

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MOS. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Mosaic in the second quarter worth $524,484,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Mosaic by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 14,240,050 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $363,110,000 after purchasing an additional 832,914 shares in the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. bought a new position in Mosaic in the 2nd quarter worth $163,662,000. Nykredit A S bought a new position in Mosaic in the 2nd quarter worth $108,329,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Mosaic by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,136,118 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $105,471,000 after purchasing an additional 25,109 shares during the period. 77.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mosaic Company Profile

The Mosaic Company is a global producer and marketer of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients. Its products are used by farmers to support plant growth, improve yields and replenish essential nutrients in agricultural soils. Mosaic also produces phosphate-based animal feed ingredients and other crop nutrition products.

Mosaic operates an integrated business that includes mining, processing, manufacturing and distribution. Its phosphate operations are primarily located in the United States, while its potash operations include mining assets in Canada and the United States.