The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) Stock Holdings Lifted by Donald Smith & CO. Inc.

Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS - Free Report) by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,751,580 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 668,347 shares during the period. Mosaic accounts for about 1.7% of Donald Smith & CO. Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. owned 0.86% of Mosaic worth $73,687,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MOS. Highlander Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Mosaic by 515.4% in the first quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC now owns 800 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mosaic by 40.0% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,229 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the period. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new position in Mosaic in the second quarter worth about $46,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in shares of Mosaic in the second quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mosaic in the 1st quarter worth $50,000. 77.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on MOS. Barclays lowered their price objective on Mosaic from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Mosaic from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of Mosaic in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Mosaic from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Mosaic from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Mosaic currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $33.11.

Mosaic Stock Performance

Shares of Mosaic stock traded up $0.48 on Wednesday, hitting $27.17. The stock had a trading volume of 3,044,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,344,460. The stock has a market cap of $8.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The Mosaic Company has a 52-week low of $24.11 and a 52-week high of $38.30. The company's 50 day moving average price is $26.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.19.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.66 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $2.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.90 billion. Mosaic had a return on equity of 6.92% and a net margin of 2.01%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Mosaic Company will post 2.27 EPS for the current year.

Mosaic Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 19th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were given a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. Mosaic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mosaic

In other news, Director Kelvin R. Westbrook sold 12,666 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.32, for a total transaction of $346,035.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $938,687.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Walter F. Precourt III sold 39,748 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.96, for a total transaction of $1,111,354.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,682 shares in the company, valued at $3,821,628.72. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Kelvin R. Westbrook sold 12,666 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.32, for a total transaction of $346,035.12. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 34,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at $938,687.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Mosaic

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.