Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $12.06, but opened at $12.65. Compass Minerals International shares last traded at $12.19, with a volume of 609,430 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CMP has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Compass Minerals International in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Compass Minerals International to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Compass Minerals International has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.00.

Compass Minerals International Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $10.30 and its 200-day moving average is $11.84. The company has a market cap of $553.88 million, a PE ratio of -6.41, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.11.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Compass Minerals International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CMP. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Compass Minerals International by 26.2% in the second quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 4,659 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Compass Minerals International by 0.6% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 176,600 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,780,000 after acquiring an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Compass Minerals International by 4.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC increased its holdings in shares of Compass Minerals International by 0.3% in the second quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 860,796 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $8,892,000 after purchasing an additional 2,167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Compass Minerals International by 8.2% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 30,553 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 2,311 shares during the last quarter. 99.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.