Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Shares Down 3.6% – Time to Sell?

Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP)’s stock price dropped 3.6% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $14.33 and last traded at $14.37. Approximately 40,951 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 819,648 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.91.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CMP. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Compass Minerals International to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Compass Minerals International in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.00.

Compass Minerals International Trading Up 1.0 %

The stock has a market cap of $615.53 million, a PE ratio of -3.54 and a beta of 1.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $12.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 2.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.47.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The basic materials company reported ($1.01) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.67) by ($0.34). The business had revenue of $202.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $201.86 million. Compass Minerals International had a positive return on equity of 4.75% and a negative net margin of 14.81%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Compass Minerals International, Inc. will post 0.04 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. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Compass Minerals International by 3.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,579,361 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $72,079,000 after purchasing an additional 160,632 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of Compass Minerals International by 12.3% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 36,670 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $577,000 after acquiring an additional 4,005 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Compass Minerals International by 4.3% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,722 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $516,000 after acquiring an additional 1,358 shares during the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new position in Compass Minerals International in the first quarter valued at about $216,000. Finally, Invenomic Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Compass Minerals International in the first quarter worth about $7,486,000. Institutional investors own 99.78% of the company’s stock.

Compass Minerals International Company Profile

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.