By Dhirendra Tripathi
Investing.com – CF Industries stock (NYSE:CF) traded 3% higher in Friday's premarket after it raised its full-year EBITDA guidance amid soaring sales of fertilizers.
The stock had closed 2.7% lower Thursday.
The fertilizer manufacturer now sees its EBITDA at $2.75 billion at the midpoint of its guidance range, 20% higher than the previous forecast of $2.3 billion.
The company said that reflected higher-than-expected realized pricing for products and strong demand for nitrogen-based fertilizers, an outcome of pandemic-fueled consumption of both organic and processed foods.
CF Industries also credited favorable weather that has enabled the strongest fall ammonia application season in North America in the last decade.
The company reported its third-quarter results last month and said the global nitrogen demand-supply balance should remain tight at least into 2023. It said the conditions were favorable for prices to remain strong. It pegged its ammonia production for the year at 9 million tons.
It projected that farmers in North America will continue to plant nitrogen-consuming crops (corn, wheat, cotton and canola) at high levels given the current relatively high prices for those crops. Industrial activity in the region continues to increase in line with economic activity, supporting further demand for nitrogen products, it said in November.
CF’s third-quarter sales rose 61% to $1.36 billion.