Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Lifted to Buy at Loop Capital

Loop Capital upgraded shares of Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Friday, Marketbeat reports. Loop Capital currently has $23.00 target price on the basic materials company’s stock, down from their prior target price of $26.00.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Compass Minerals International from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 9th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Compass Minerals International from $75.00 to $60.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Compass Minerals International from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Compass Minerals International has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $33.80.

Compass Minerals International Price Performance

NYSE CMP opened at $13.04 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $17.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.81. The stock has a market cap of $538.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 3.07, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98. Compass Minerals International has a 52 week low of $11.85 and a 52 week high of $39.78.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The basic materials company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.19). Compass Minerals International had a negative net margin of 4.97% and a positive return on equity of 4.56%. The business had revenue of $341.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $352.84 million. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Compass Minerals International will post 0.11 EPS for the current year.

Compass Minerals International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.60%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. Compass Minerals International’s payout ratio is presently -41.10%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Compass Minerals International

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Morningstar Investment Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Compass Minerals International by 89.2% during the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 1,352,718 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,333,000 after buying an additional 637,883 shares during the last quarter. Magnolia Group LLC grew its position in Compass Minerals International by 105.8% in the fourth quarter. Magnolia Group LLC now owns 849,490 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $21,509,000 after acquiring an additional 436,660 shares in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Compass Minerals International during the 4th quarter worth $5,039,000. Shapiro Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. Shapiro Capital Management LLC now owns 1,278,722 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,740,000 after purchasing an additional 193,725 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Yost Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Compass Minerals International in the fourth quarter worth $4,583,000. 99.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Compass Minerals International Company Profile

Compass Minerals International, Inc, provides essential minerals in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Salt and Plant Nutrition. The Salt segment produces, markets, and sells sodium chloride and magnesium chloride, including rock salt, mechanically and solar evaporated salt, and brine and flake magnesium chloride products; and purchases potassium chloride and calcium chloride to sell as finished products or to blend with sodium chloride to produce specialty products.