Citigroup Has Lowered Expectations for Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Stock Price

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by equities research analysts at Citigroup from $12.50 to $11.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the mining company's stock. Citigroup's price objective suggests a potential upside of 17.90% from the company's current price.

CLF has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Cleveland-Cliffs from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $15.00 to $13.50 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $16.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $17.22.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Performance

Cleveland-Cliffs stock traded down $0.21 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $9.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 21,195,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,666,134. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $12.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.85. Cleveland-Cliffs has a 12-month low of $9.13 and a 12-month high of $22.97. The company has a market capitalization of $4.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.62 and a beta of 1.92.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The mining company reported ($0.33) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.31) by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.72 billion. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative net margin of 2.31% and a negative return on equity of 0.59%. Cleveland-Cliffs's revenue was down 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Cleveland-Cliffs will post -0.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC increased its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 299.8% in the 3rd quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,490 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Cleveland-Cliffs in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs during the third quarter worth $34,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in Cleveland-Cliffs in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 231.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,634 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 2,539 shares during the period. 67.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Cleveland-Cliffs

Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest flat-rolled steel company and the largest iron ore pellet producer in North America. The company is vertically integrated from mining through iron making, steelmaking, rolling, finishing and downstream with hot and cold stamping of steel parts and components. The company was formerly known as Cliffs Natural Resources Inc and changed its name to Cleveland-Cliffs Inc in August 2017.