Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) Stock Price

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS - Free Report) had its price objective cut by Morgan Stanley from $40.00 to $30.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the basic materials company's stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on MOS. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Mosaic in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Mosaic from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Mosaic from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Barclays dropped their target price on Mosaic from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, CIBC started coverage on Mosaic in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mosaic currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $35.09.

Mosaic Price Performance

NYSE:MOS traded up $1.92 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $26.75. 6,319,619 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,261,807. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $25.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.75. Mosaic has a 52-week low of $23.56 and a 52-week high of $33.44. The company has a market cap of $8.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 12th. The basic materials company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.24). Mosaic had a return on equity of 6.00% and a net margin of 3.24%. The firm had revenue of $2.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.68 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 20.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mosaic will post 2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mosaic Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. This is a boost from Mosaic's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Mosaic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.88%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mosaic by 180,900.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,810 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 1,809 shares during the period. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in Mosaic during the second quarter worth about $49,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mosaic by 46.4% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,799 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mosaic by 23.2% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 2,037 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its stake in Mosaic by 85.2% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,189 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 1,007 shares during the period. 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.