"Best Performing Stocks from the Top 5 Fertilizer Companies over the Last Quarter"

In the agricultural chemicals sector, the stocks of CF Industries Holdings Inc, Corteva Inc, FMC Corporation, Nutrien Ltd, and The Mosaic Company have seen the biggest gains over the past three months.

Criteria for selecting the companies

• Sector: chemical industry, agricultural chemistry
• The companies are not funds
• Their stocks are traded on the NYSE and NASDAQ
• The value of the stocks exceeds $2
• Their market capitalisation exceeds $300 million
• The average trading volume statistics for the last 30 days is over 750,000 stocks

The growth value was defined as the percentage difference between the opening price on 15 July and the closing price on 14 October 2022. The market capitalisation of each firm was valid at the time of writing this article.

1. CF Industries Holdings – 19.93%

Date of foundation: 1946.

Country of registration: US.

Headquarters: Deerfield, Illinois.

Exchange: NYSE.

Market capitalisation: $19.5 billion.

CF Industries Holdings Inc. manufactures hydrogen and nitrogen products for clean energy and the reduction of emissions, as well as agricultural fertilisers.

The corporation's main products for agriculture are ammonia, granular urea, ammonium nitrate and urea, and ammonium nitrate solution (Urea Ammonium Nitrate). CF Industries Holdings Inc. has production facilities in the US, Canada, and the UK.

CF Industries Holdings Inc (NYSE:CF) stocks increased 19.93% in three months, from $81.75 to $98.04 per unit. On 1 August, the company reported for the second quarter of 2022. For the April-June period, revenue increased 113.4% to $3.39 billion, net income recorded a 373.6% rise to $1.17 billion and earnings per stock skyrocketed 389.5% to $5.58, compared to the same period a year ago.

2. Corteva – 12.27%

Date of foundation: 2018.

Country of registration: US.

Headquarters: Indianapolis, Indiana.

Exchange: NYSE.

Market capitalisation: $42.2 billion.

Agrochemicals company Corteva Inc. produces hybrid and genetically modified crop seeds, fertilisers, and crop protection products, as well as introducing modern technologies into the agricultural sector.

Since 15 July, the stocks of Corteva Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) recorded a 12.27% rise, from $52.31 to $58.73 per unit. The company's report for the second quarter of this year, which was released in early August, indicates that its April-June revenue increased 11% to $6.25 billion, net income fell 0.1% to $972 million, while earnings per stock did not record any change, remaining at $1.37.

3. FMC – 9.03%

Date of foundation: 1883.

Country of registration: US.

Headquarters: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Exchange: NYSE.

Market capitalisation: $14 billion.

FMC Corporation manufactures and sells products for plant protection, treatment and care, as well as crop improvement, and insect and weed control. The most popular chemicals in the company's product catalogue are insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides.

FMC Corporation (NYSE:FMC) stock gained 9.03% in three months, rising from $101.66 to $110.84. However, in August, the company reported a 33.9% decline in the net income for the period from April to June to $134.2 million and a 32.5% decline in earnings per stock to $1.06. At the same time, quarterly revenue increased by 16.9% to $1.45 billion.

4. Nutrien – 6.92%

Date of foundation: 2017.

Country of registration: Canada.

Headquarters: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Exchange: NYSE.

Market capitalisation: $42 billion.

Nutrien Ltd. provides its customers with complete solutions for agriculture, including nutrients, crop protection products, and seeds, as well as technical services and digital tools. The company produces and sells potash, nitrogen, phosphate and sulphate fertilisers.

Nutrien Ltd. has around 2000 retail outlets in the US, Canada, South America, and Australia. According to the company's website, this network serves more than 500,000 customers.

Nutrien Ltd. (NYSE:NTR) gained 6.92%, from $72.88 to $77.92 per unit, from mid-July to mid-October. The firm reported a 49% increase in revenue to $14.5 billion, a 224% rise in net income to $3.6 billion, and a 236% increase in earnings per stock to $6.51 for the second quarter of 2022.

5. The Mosaic Company – 5.59%

Date of establishment: 2004.

Country of registration: US.

Headquarters: Tampa, Florida.

Exchange: NYSE.

Market capitalisation: $17.95 billion.

The Mosaic Company is a mining and chemical company and one of the world's leading producers of concentrated phosphate and potash fertilisers for crops. Its products are available under such brand names as K-Mag, Sus-Terra, Aspire, MicroEssentials, Pegasus, and others.

In the previous 90 days, The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) stock gained 5.59%, from $44.38 to $46.86 per unit. Last quarter's report showed revenue up 91.9% to $5.37 billion, net income up 136.9% to $1.03 billion, and earnings per stock up 150.4% to $2.85.

What influenced the rise in the stock of fertiliser producers?    

The military conflict between Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine forced Western countries to impose economic sanctions and halt deliveries of Russian and Belarusian-made agricultural fertilisers. We remind you that Russia and Belarus are among the world's largest exporters of the said products.

The war, as well as the aforementioned sanctions and trade embargo, have led to a significant increase in the cost of agricultural fertilisers. In addition, the difficult weather conditions, supply chain disruptions, and frightening levels of inflation have all contributed to worsening the situation in the agricultural sector.

Crop yields could deteriorate critically, which would of course aggravate food shortages and push the global food crisis to a new level.

This would impact the value of agricultural chemicals positively and, consequently, the business of the US and Canadian sectors.

From mid-July to mid-October this year, CF Industries Holdings Inc. stock gained 19.93%, Corteva Inc. rose 12.27%, FMC Corporation recorded a 9.03% growth, Nutrien Ltd. gained 6.92% and The Mosaic Company went up 5.59%.

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