Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday . Approximately 4,277,813 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 426% from the previous session’s volume of 813,442 shares.The stock last traded at $14.76 and had previously closed at $12.00.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CMP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised 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 set a $20.00 price target on shares of Compass Minerals International in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.00.

Compass Minerals International Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $603.10 million, a PE ratio of -3.55 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 2.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.47. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.66.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The basic materials company reported ($1.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.67) by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $202.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $201.86 million. Compass Minerals International had a positive return on equity of 4.75% and a negative net margin of 14.81%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Compass Minerals International, Inc. will post 0.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CMP. Denver PWM LLC purchased a new position in Compass Minerals International in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 629.4% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,407 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 2,077 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Compass Minerals International during the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Compass Minerals International during the 2nd quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Compass Minerals International in the 2nd quarter worth about $46,000. 99.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.