Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $12.61, but opened at $11.95. Compass Minerals International shares last traded at $12.19, with a volume of 213,796 shares trading hands.

The basic materials company reported ($0.77) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $208.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $323.61 million. Compass Minerals International had a positive return on equity of 4.75% and a negative net margin of 14.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 38.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.05 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CMP shares. StockNews.com raised Compass Minerals International to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Compass Minerals International from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.50.

Institutional Trading of Compass Minerals International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMP. Denver PWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Compass Minerals International by 33.8% in the third quarter. Denver PWM LLC now owns 3,745 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 946 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in Compass Minerals International by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 38,326 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $461,000 after buying an additional 1,437 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Compass Minerals International by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 66,940 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $805,000 after buying an additional 1,482 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Compass Minerals International by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 89,357 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,074,000 after buying an additional 1,764 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 629.4% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,407 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 2,077 shares during the period. 99.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Compass Minerals International Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $498.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.93 and a beta of 1.17. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.90, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.47.

About Compass Minerals International

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.