5 Best Fast Growth Stocks to Buy Now

4. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Number of Hedge Fund Shareholders: 52

Ammonia producer CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) is coming off a record 2021 fueled by rising fertilizer prices, which show no signs of regressing any time soon. It’s been a remarkable two-year run for the company following a sales and EPS decline in 2020. Revenue rose by more than 50% in 2021 to $6.54 billion, while EPS nearly tripled to $4.27.

Incredibly, the company’s pace of growth has accelerated even further this year, with its trailing twelve-month (TTM) sales ballooning to $11.1 billion and its operating income rising by about 150% compared to 2021, hitting $5.5 billion. CF shares have gained 51% this year, but still trade at less than 7x earnings, which suggests the market is skeptical of how long the good times will last. However, barring a dramatic reversal in Ukraine sometime soon, the good times should persist into the future for CF Industries.

Hedge fund ownership of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) rose for six straight quarters through Q1 2022, more than doubling in total during that time. Numerous hedge funds decided the time was right to take their profits and get out of CF during Q2 however, as there was a 21% decline in smart money ownership of the stock. On the other hand, several bulls continued to enlarge their CF positions, including Cliff Asness’ AQR Capital Management, which hiked its position by 79% during Q2 to 1.82 million shares.

Chartwell Investment Partners sold off its stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) during Q2, fearing a potential announcement of capacity additions, as relayed in its Q2 2022 investor letter:

“We sold the full position in fertilizer company CF Industries, which also had a 20%+ YTD return (through 6/30), as we had concerns that the company would announce capacity additions, which would negatively impact nitrogen pricing.”