Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) Shares Down 6.1% After Earnings Miss

Shares of The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) traded down 6.1% during trading on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $26.52 and last traded at $26.7410. Approximately 8,790,638 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 29% from the average session volume of 6,799,851 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.49.

The basic materials company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.26). Mosaic had a net margin of 10.33% and a return on equity of 6.46%. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. Mosaic’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Mosaic Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Mosaic’s payout ratio is currently 22.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MOS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Mosaic from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Zacks Research raised shares of Mosaic from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price target on shares of Mosaic from $43.00 to $35.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Oppenheimer set a $35.00 price target on shares of Mosaic in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered their price objective on shares of Mosaic from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mosaic presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mosaic

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in Mosaic by 27.8% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in shares of Mosaic in the first quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mosaic by 170.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 54,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,463,000 after buying an additional 34,151 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in Mosaic by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 26,836 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $725,000 after buying an additional 7,760 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Mosaic by 169.3% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 956 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 601 shares during the period. 77.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mosaic Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $8.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.94, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.80.

About Mosaic

Mosaic Co is one of the world’s leading producers and marketers of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients. The company’s primary business activities center on the extraction, processing and distribution of phosphate rock, phosphate-based fertilizers and potash products. These core nutrients are essential components in modern agriculture, supporting crop yields and soil health across a range of farming applications.

In its phosphate segment, Mosaic operates mining and production facilities that convert phosphate rock into concentrated phosphates, finished phosphate fertilizers and feed phosphates for animal nutrition.