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Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) Up 23% in 3 Months: What's Driving It?
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Shares of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (CLF - Free Report) have moved up around 22.6% in the past three months, against the industry’s decline of roughly 7.4%.
Cleveland-Cliffs, which sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), has a market cap of roughly $3 billion. Average volume of shares traded in the past three months was around 10,863.1K.
Let’s take a look into the factors that are driving this mining company.
Driving Factors
Better-than-expected second-quarter performance, upbeat outlook, debt-reduction initiatives and strong demand for pellets are contributing to the rally in Cleveland-Cliffs’ shares.
The company reported net earnings (attributable to shareholders) of $165.1 million or 55 cents per share in second-quarter 2018, up from net earnings of $31.8 million or 10 cents in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted earnings of 76 cents for the quarter beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 56 cents.
The company also witnessed higher sales volumes in the quarter, mainly driven by higher actual demand for pellets along with higher prices. Buoyed by strong demand for pellets, the company has raised full-year sales volume guidance to 21 million long tons from the previous projection of 20.5 million. Notably, it expects to sell between 6 million and 6.5 million long tons in the third quarter and the remaining is expected to be sold in the fourth quarter.
Moreover, Cleveland-Cliffs is focused on de-leveraging its balance sheet. The company’s long-term debt was down roughly 42.5% year over year to $2,297 million at the end of the second quarter. The company’s debt-cut actions are likely to reduce its annualized interest expense. Moreover, the company’s cash and cash equivalents jumped more than two-folds to $802.5 million at the end of second-quarter 2018.
Ingevity has an expected long-term earnings growth rate of 12%. Its shares have surged 62.7% in the past year.
Huntsman has an expected long-term earnings growth rate of 8.5%. Its shares have returned 23.9% in a year.
Celanese has an expected long-term earnings growth rate of 10%. Its shares have gained 21.1% in the past year.
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Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) Up 23% in 3 Months: What's Driving It?
Shares of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (CLF - Free Report) have moved up around 22.6% in the past three months, against the industry’s decline of roughly 7.4%.
Cleveland-Cliffs, which sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), has a market cap of roughly $3 billion. Average volume of shares traded in the past three months was around 10,863.1K.
Let’s take a look into the factors that are driving this mining company.
Driving Factors
Better-than-expected second-quarter performance, upbeat outlook, debt-reduction initiatives and strong demand for pellets are contributing to the rally in Cleveland-Cliffs’ shares.
The company reported net earnings (attributable to shareholders) of $165.1 million or 55 cents per share in second-quarter 2018, up from net earnings of $31.8 million or 10 cents in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted earnings of 76 cents for the quarter beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 56 cents.
The company also witnessed higher sales volumes in the quarter, mainly driven by higher actual demand for pellets along with higher prices. Buoyed by strong demand for pellets, the company has raised full-year sales volume guidance to 21 million long tons from the previous projection of 20.5 million. Notably, it expects to sell between 6 million and 6.5 million long tons in the third quarter and the remaining is expected to be sold in the fourth quarter.
Moreover, Cleveland-Cliffs is focused on de-leveraging its balance sheet. The company’s long-term debt was down roughly 42.5% year over year to $2,297 million at the end of the second quarter. The company’s debt-cut actions are likely to reduce its annualized interest expense. Moreover, the company’s cash and cash equivalents jumped more than two-folds to $802.5 million at the end of second-quarter 2018.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. Price and Consensus
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. Price and Consensus | Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. Quote
Other Stocks to Consider
A few other top-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are Ingevity Corporation (NGVT - Free Report) , Huntsman Corporation (HUN - Free Report) and Celanese Corporation (CE - Free Report) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Ingevity has an expected long-term earnings growth rate of 12%. Its shares have surged 62.7% in the past year.
Huntsman has an expected long-term earnings growth rate of 8.5%. Its shares have returned 23.9% in a year.
Celanese has an expected long-term earnings growth rate of 10%. Its shares have gained 21.1% in the past year.
Today's Stocks from Zacks' Hottest Strategies
It's hard to believe, even for us at Zacks. But while the market gained +21.9% in 2017, our top stock-picking screens have returned +115.0%, +109.3%, +104.9%, +98.6%, and +67.1%.
And this outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. Over the years it has been remarkably consistent. From 2000 - 2017, the composite yearly average gain for these strategies has beaten the market more than 19X over. Maybe even more remarkable is the fact that we're willing to share their latest stocks with you without cost or obligation.
See Them Free>>