Long-term trends will spur Nutrien

Article Excerpt

Potash prices have fallen 60% in the past year after spiking in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In response, Nutrien paused its plan to expand its potash production. However, the long-term outlook for fertilizer prices remains bright, particularly as China and India aim to boost their domestic food production. The company is also cutting its costs, which sets it up for higher profits when potash prices do rebound. NUTRIEN LTD. $85 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol NTR; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 494.5 million; Market cap: $42.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.0; Dividend yield: 3.4%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.nutrien.com) is the world’s largest producer of agricultural fertilizers: it ships about 27 million tonnes annually. Nutrien took its current form on January 1, 2018, through the merger of fertilizer producer Agrium (old symbol AGU) and its rival Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (old symbol POT). At the time, Potash Corp. investors owned 52% of the new company, while Agrium…