May 25, 2023
Top 10 Stock CF Industries Hold Recommendation
How to read the ranks
For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".
Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".
Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.
Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.
(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).
(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.
Snapshot: CF Industries – Top 10 Stock in Employee Satisfaction Leaders in the United States
CF Industries is listed as a top 10 stock on May 25, 2023 in the market index Employee Focus US because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. While half the consolidated Obermatt Ranks are above-average, investor sentiment is negative and growth performance is below market average, both a sign for caution. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 37 (37% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall hold recommendation for CF Industries on May 25, 2023.
Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks
| Country | USA |
| Industry | Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals |
| Index | Low Emissions, Employee Focus US, Human Rights, S&P 500 |
| Size class | X-Large |
When Obermatt identifies the Top 10 stocks in a market, it’s based on a certain investment strategy. The best performing stocks usually aren’t the ones that everyone is talking about (those are often "over-priced" and have low Value ranks).
For each investment strategy, we provide you with more detailed analysis and our recommendation. You see the ranks of the top 10 stocks ranked by that particular investment strategy (360° View, Sentiment, Value, Growth, Safety and Combined Financial Performance).
360° View: Obermatt 360° Assessment CF Industries Hold
| 360 METRICS | May 25, 2023 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 53 |
|
||||||
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 12 |
|
||||||
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 94 |
|
||||||
| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 43 |
|
||||||
| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 37 |
|
||||||
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 37 (better than 37% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock CF Industries are below the industry average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with half the metrics below and half above average for CF Industries. The consolidated Value Rank has an attractive rank of 53, which means that the share price of CF Industries is on the lower side compared with typical size in indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. This means the stock price is lower than for 53% of alternative stocks in the same industry. The company is also safely financed with a Safety rank of 94. But the professional market sentiment is below average compared with other stock investment alternatives with a Sentiment Rank of 43. Professional investors are more confident in 57% other stocks. The consolidated Growth Rank also has a low rank of 12, which means that the company is below average in terms of growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, invested capital growth, and stock returns. 88 of its competitors have better growth. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a 360° View of 37, CF Industries is worse than 63% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. The picture is mixed here. The stock seems to be a good value (Value Rank of 53), and the financing structure is on the safer side (Safety Rank of 94). However, sentiment in the professional investor community is below-average (Sentiment Rank of 43), as is the growth momentum for the company (Growth Rank of 12). While everybody wants to buy at low stock prices (good value), professionals’ skepticism may mean that the low price is justified. Even though the financing structure is not as important as Value, Growth, and Sentiment, investors should still be careful with this decision and conduct further research if they are serious about investing in this company. ...read more
Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for CF Industries only reserved
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 43 (better than 43% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock CF Industries is below industry average. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with half of the metrics below and half above average for CF Industries. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 35 (worse than 65% of alternative investments), which means that currently, stock research analysts tend to warn against investing in the stock of the company. Worse, Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 21, which means that stock research experts are getting even more pessimistic. Other sentiment indicators are positive: The Professional Investors rank is 90, which means that professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 90% of alternative investment opportunities. So, pros tend to favor investing in this company. In addition, Market Pulse has a rank of 50, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks tend to be positive when discussing this company (more positive news than for 50% of competitors). While stock research analysts are getting ever more critical, many professional investors are committed to CF Industries and the professional news channels are on the positive side. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 43 (less encouraging than 57% compared with investment alternatives), CF Industries has a reputation among professional investors that is below that of its competitors. This is an ambiguous picture: analysts are negative and getting even more critical, while the news in the market is positive. Who should investors believe? This is a difficult question in such a situation. Investors should proceed cautiously and verify not only the financial performance in the Obermatt Value, Growth and Safety Ranks but also independent news coverage of the company. ...read more
Value Strategy: CF Industries Stock Price Value better than average
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 53 (better than 53% compared with alternatives), CF Industries shares are more attractively priced than the majority of comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators above average for CF Industries. Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price to earnings, P/E ratio) is 82 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is lower than 82% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning CF Industries's profit levels. The same is valid for the expected Price-to-Book Capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Capital Rank of 50, and it's also true for Dividend Yield with an Dividend Yield Rank of 70. But, compared with other companies in the same industry, the stock price is higher than average if compared with expected revenues; only 73% of all competitors have an even higher stock price compared with sales revenues (a Price-to-Sales Rank of 27). Profits, the level of invested capital, and dividend policy suggest that this stock is attractively priced. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 53, is a BUY recommendation based on CF Industries's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. Since it is on the expensive side for Price-to-Sales, it may mean that CF Industries has pricing power in its distribution market because it can charge higher prices than its competitors. If this is the case, all four value indicators are positive signals for purchasing CF Industries shares. ...read more
Growth Strategy: CF Industries Growth Momentum negative
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 12 (better than 12% compared with alternatives), CF Industries shows one of the most restricted growth dynamics in its industry. There is little momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for CF Industries. Only Capital Growth has a good rank of 96, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its invested capital more than 14% of its competitors. The other three indicators are pointing South: Sales Growth has a rank of 4 which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 96% of its competitors. Profit Growth with a rank of 14 and Stock Returns with a rank of 8 are also low (below 92% of alternative investments). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 12, is a SELL recommendation for growth and momentum investors. The good news from the invested capital side is surprising. A company with disappointing revenues, profits, and disappointed shareholders typically doesn't invest above average. Overall, the growth momentum for CF Industries is thus negative. As it is intriguing to see that company executives are optimistic about their investment policy, it is worthwhile looking into the details of the capital investment projects. They may indicate future growth and profits and thus if accompanied by a good value, a sign of good timing to invest in the stock. ...read more
Safety Strategy: CF Industries Debt Financing Safety very solid
| SAFETY METRICS | May 25, 2023 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 85 |
|
||||||
| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 64 |
|
||||||
| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 76 |
|
||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 94 |
|
||||||
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 94 (better than 94% compared with alternatives) for 2023, the company CF Industries has safe financing practices, which means that their overall debt burden is low. This doesn't mean that the business of CF Industries is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, where all three are above average for CF Industries. Leverage is at 85, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 85% of its competitors. Refinancing is at a rank of 64, meaning that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 64% of its competitors. Finally, Liquidity is also good at a rank of 76, which means that the company generates more profit to service its debt than 76% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 94 (better than 94% compared with alternatives), CF Industries has a financing structure that is significantly safer than that of its competitors. These three positive financing indicators signal that the company is less likely to default on its debt obligations. However, it also means that its shareholder returns will be more modest if things go well. A low safety means fewer troubles in downtimes and less upside in good times. ...read more
Combined financial peformance: CF Industries Above-Average Financial Performance
| COMBINED PERFORMANCE | May 25, 2023 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 53 |
|
||||||
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 12 |
|
||||||
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 76 |
|
||||||
| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 53 |
|
||||||
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 53 (better than 53% compared with investment alternatives), CF Industries (Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals, USA) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of CF Industries are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Obermatt Value Rank of 53 (better than 53% of alternatives), are safely financed (Safety Rank of 94, which means low debt burdens), but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 12). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: An Obermatt Combined Rank of 53, is a buy recommendation based on CF Industries's financial characteristics. As the company CF Industries's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 53) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 12) while being safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 94), it may be a safer investment because companies with low debt can better withstand times of crises. Yet the good value, better than 53% of comparable companies, may also indicate that the company's future is challenging. If you believe that low growth is temporary or just due to a specific current event, you may conclude that the good value of the stock provides an attractive investment opportunity and the downside is limited due to below-average financing risks. ...read more
Obermatt Portfolio Performance
We’re so convinced about our research, that we buy our stock tips.
See the performance of the Obermatt portfolio.