BNP Paribas Upgrades Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) to Strong-Buy

BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on MOS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Mosaic from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $26.00 to $29.00 in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Mosaic from $40.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Mosaic from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Mosaic from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, CIBC started coverage on shares of Mosaic in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mosaic presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.58.

Mosaic Trading Up 5.7 %

Mosaic stock traded up $1.37 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $25.57. 500,887 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,552,962. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.14. Mosaic has a fifty-two week low of $22.36 and a fifty-two week high of $32.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.56, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.04.

Mosaic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. Mosaic’s dividend payout ratio is presently 160.00%.

Institutional Trading of Mosaic

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Mosaic in the 4th quarter valued at about $97,363,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Mosaic by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,507,131 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $332,005,000 after acquiring an additional 3,058,243 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Mosaic by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,041,218 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $271,382,000 after acquiring an additional 2,151,426 shares in the last quarter. Criteria Caixa S.A.U. purchased a new stake in shares of Mosaic in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,231,000. Finally, Covalis Capital LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Mosaic in the 4th quarter valued at $27,031,000. 77.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mosaic Company Profile

The Mosaic Company, through its subsidiaries, produces and markets concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients in North America and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Phosphates, Potash, and Mosaic Fertilizantes. It owns and operates mines, which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients, such as diammonium phosphate, monoammonium phosphate, and ammoniated phosphate products; and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients primarily under the Biofos and Nexfos brand names, as well as produces a double sulfate of potash magnesia product under K-Mag brand name.