Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Rating Increased to Overweight at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm presently has a $15.00 target price on the basic materials company's stock, up from their previous target price of $13.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price would suggest a potential upside of 32.86% from the stock's previous close.

Separately, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Compass Minerals International from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th.

Compass Minerals International Price Performance

Compass Minerals International stock traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $11.29. 468,782 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 486,372. The company's fifty day moving average is $12.17 and its 200-day moving average is $11.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 2.71. The firm has a market cap of $468.20 million, a PE ratio of -2.17, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.21. Compass Minerals International has a 52 week low of $7.51 and a 52 week high of $23.59.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The basic materials company reported ($0.55) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.05) by ($0.50). Compass Minerals International had a negative return on equity of 2.15% and a negative net margin of 19.24%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Compass Minerals International will post 0.33 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Compass Minerals International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 2,077 shares in the last quarter. Tsfg LLC purchased a new position in Compass Minerals International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Denver PWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 33.8% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 247.7% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,110 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 2,928 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Compass Minerals International in the 4th quarter valued at $80,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.78% of the company's stock.

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.