Ag Sector Outperforming Sharply; CF Working Toward MLP, RBC Started Mosaic, Agrium At Outperform - CF Industries Holdings (NYSE:CF)

Stocks in the Fertilizer group are moving higher Wednesday afternoon following some new coverage from RBC Capital's Chris Nocella this morning. The Market Vectors Agribusiness ETF

MOO

is trading up more than 0.7 percent at last check. Nocella initiated coverage on the following stocks:

Mosaic MOS - Outperform, $57 price target - The analyst is attracted to a recent trend toward "improving demand in the potash and phosphate markets" and an expectation for "substantial" returns to holders over the next few years. Nocella noted the company's solid position in the phosphate market which could "better position Mosaic if others are interested in its potash assets."
Agrium AGU - Outperform, $122 target - Called Agrium's input business "the most diverse, vertically integrated" within the Ag space. Sees "a clear path to strong earnings growth from both its Retail and Wholesale" units which could translate to "robust cash flows with lower volatility."
Potash POT - Market Perform, $37 target.
CF Industries CF - Market Perform, $235 target.
Interpid Potash IPI - Market Perform, $16 target.

Also impacting the Ag names Wednesday is headlines out of CF the company is working with investment banks related to an MLP. Mosaic shares are up more than 3 percent recently, shares of Agrium are up 2.2 percent, shares of Potash are up nearly 1 percent, shares of CF are nearly 11 percent and Intrepid Potash shares are up 2.4 percent.

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