CVR Partners (NYSE:UAN) Cut to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of CVR Partners (NYSE:UAN) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Friday.

CVR Partners Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of UAN opened at $79.78 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of 13.85 and a beta of 1.35. CVR Partners has a 12 month low of $61.62 and a 12 month high of $88.94. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $78.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94.

CVR Partners (NYSE:UAN) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $139.56 million for the quarter. CVR Partners had a return on equity of 20.61% and a net margin of 11.59%.

CVR Partners Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This is an increase from CVR Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $7.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 8.77%. CVR Partners’s payout ratio is presently 121.53%.

Insider Activity

In other CVR Partners news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn acquired 2,518 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $74.97 per share, with a total value of $188,774.46. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 147,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,036,558.61. This trade represents a 1.74 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have acquired 23,855 shares of company stock valued at $1,777,923 in the last ninety days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its position in CVR Partners by 137.2% in the 4th quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,803 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $137,000 after buying an additional 1,043 shares in the last quarter. Novem Group bought a new stake in CVR Partners in the 4th quarter valued at about $243,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in CVR Partners by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,833 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $975,000 after buying an additional 1,520 shares in the last quarter. Icahn Carl C increased its position in CVR Partners by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Icahn Carl C now owns 4,066,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $308,868,000 after buying an additional 174,192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in CVR Partners in the 4th quarter valued at about $480,000. 43.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About CVR Partners

CVR Partners, LP, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and sale of nitrogen fertilizer products in the United States. The company offers ammonia products for agricultural and industrial customers; and urea ammonium nitrate products to agricultural customers, as well as retailers and distributors.