Aviva PLC Cuts Holdings in Nutrien Ltd. (NYSE:NTR)

Aviva PLC reduced its holdings in shares of Nutrien Ltd. (NYSE:NTR - Free Report) by 44.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 299,314 shares of the company's stock after selling 242,680 shares during the period. Aviva PLC owned about 0.06% of Nutrien worth $13,366,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NTR. Covea Finance increased its position in shares of Nutrien by 21.9% during the fourth quarter. Covea Finance now owns 55,600 shares of the company's stock worth $2,485,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Nutrien by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,396,887 shares of the company's stock worth $67,200,000 after purchasing an additional 151,596 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Nutrien by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,886,376 shares of the company's stock valued at $84,367,000 after purchasing an additional 144,025 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Nutrien by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,480,870 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,264,000 after purchasing an additional 80,382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Secured Retirement Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nutrien in the 4th quarter valued at about $654,000. 63.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Nutrien Stock Performance

NTR traded up $2.73 on Friday, hitting $51.05. 2,557,390 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,068,506. Nutrien Ltd. has a 12-month low of $43.70 and a 12-month high of $60.87. The company has a 50 day moving average of $50.74 and a 200-day moving average of $49.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.96 billion, a PE ratio of 37.26, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.77.

Nutrien (NYSE:NTR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.09). Nutrien had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 2.62%. The company had revenue of $5.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.09 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Nutrien Ltd. will post 3.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Nutrien Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Nutrien's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 159.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on NTR shares. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Nutrien from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Nutrien from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Nutrien from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Nutrien from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Nutrien from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.00.

Nutrien Company Profile

Nutrien Ltd. provides crop inputs and services. The company operates through four segments: Retail, Potash, Nitrogen, and Phosphate. The Retail segment distributes crop nutrients, crop protection products, seeds, and merchandise products. The Potash segment provides granular and standard potash products.