CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems trimmed its stake in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) by 53.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 4,732 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,389 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in CF Industries were worth $614,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in CF Industries by 26.9% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,170,171 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $90,501,000 after buying an additional 248,020 shares during the last quarter. Cambiar Investors LLC bought a new position in CF Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,166,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $300,000. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,556,000. Finally, Burford Brothers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $960,000. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CF has been the topic of several research reports. Freedom Capital raised CF Industries from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Berenberg Bank raised their price objective on CF Industries from $86.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. HSBC lowered their target price on shares of CF Industries from $130.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CF Industries in a report on Monday, June 29th. Two investment 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $116.69.

CF Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CF opened at $125.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 3.54 and a quick ratio of 3.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.21 billion, a PE ratio of 11.24 and a beta of 0.40. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.42 and a 1-year high of $141.96. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $114.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.48.

CF Industries Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $0.60 per share. This is an increase from CF Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. CF Industries’s payout ratio is currently 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.