CF vs. NTR: CF Industries vs. Nutrien Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR) are both classified in the Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals sub-industry within the broader Chemicals industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Company profile comparison for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Profile Item	CF	NTR
Name	CF Industries Holdings, Inc.	Nutrien Ltd.
Country/Region	United States	Canada
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Chemicals	Chemicals
GICS Sub-Industry	Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals	Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals
Market Capitalization	17.46 billion USD	33.89 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	August 11, 2005	January 2, 2018
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

NTR

GSPC

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
Total Return (1Y)	49.36%	30.80%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	17.00%	13.84%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	16.09%	4.29%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

NTR

GSPC

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	43.66%	32.77%
Beta (5Y)	0.56	0.64
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-48.36%	-58.17%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.49M	2.56M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CF and NTR are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.03	0.81
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.59	1.18

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 30.86% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Nutrien (NTR) at 8.76% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for CF.

CF

Materials industry group

30.86%

Max: 52.88%
CF: 30.86%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

NTR

Materials industry group

8.76%

Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
NTR: 8.76%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 27.48% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Nutrien (NTR) at 8.04%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

CF

Materials industry group

27.48%

Max: 38.66%
CF: 27.48%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

NTR

Materials industry group

8.04%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
NTR: 8.04%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 34.36% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Nutrien (NTR) at 10.97%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

CF

Materials industry group

34.36%

Max: 66.70%
CF: 34.36%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

NTR

Materials industry group

10.97%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
NTR: 10.97%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
ROE (TTM)	30.86%	8.76%
ROA (TTM)	12.61%	4.24%
Net Margin (TTM)	27.48%	8.04%
Operating Margin (TTM)	34.36%	10.97%
Gross Margin (TTM)	42.52%	31.60%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both CF Industries (CF) at 19.34% and Nutrien (NTR) at 3.52% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Nutrien (NTR) at 242.65% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while CF Industries (CF) at 33.09% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for NTR.

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
Revenue Growth (YoY)	19.34%	3.52%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-14.12%	-10.80%
EPS Growth (YoY)	33.09%	242.65%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	-18.19%	-30.99%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

CF Industries (CF) at 2.98 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Nutrien (NTR) at 1.41 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for NTR.

CF

Materials industry group

2.98

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
CF: 2.98
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

NTR

Materials industry group

1.41

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
NTR: 1.41
Min: 0.16

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both CF Industries (CF) at 0.41 and Nutrien (NTR) at 0.55 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

CF

Materials industry group

0.41

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
CF: 0.41
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

NTR

Materials industry group

0.55

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
NTR: 0.55
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
Current Ratio (MRQ)	2.98	1.41
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.41	0.55
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.21	2.38

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Nutrien (NTR) at 3.03% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while CF Industries (CF) at 1.77% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, NTR the richer one.

CF

Materials industry group

1.77%

Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
CF: 1.77%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

NTR

Materials industry group

3.03%

Max: 4.52%
NTR: 3.03%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 14.81% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while Nutrien (NTR) at 47.93% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

CF

Materials industry group

14.81%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
CF: 14.81%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

NTR

Materials industry group

47.93%

Max: 83.62%
NTR: 47.93%
Q3: 41.37%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.77%	3.03%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	14.81%	47.93%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

CF Industries (CF) at 8.42 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Nutrien (NTR) at 15.61 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for CF, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

CF

Materials industry group

8.42

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
CF: 8.42
Min: 3.93

NTR

Materials industry group

15.61

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
NTR: 15.61
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both CF Industries (CF) at 2.20 and Nutrien (NTR) at 1.24 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

CF

Materials industry group

2.20

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
CF: 2.20
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

NTR

Materials industry group

1.24

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
Median: 1.87
NTR: 1.24
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both CF Industries (CF) at 3.10 and Nutrien (NTR) at 1.32 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

CF

Materials industry group

3.10

Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
CF: 3.10
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

NTR

Materials industry group

1.32

Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
NTR: 1.32
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

CF Industries (CF) vs. Nutrien (NTR): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for CF Industries (CF) and Nutrien (NTR)
Metric	CF	NTR
P/E Ratio (TTM)	8.42	15.61
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.20	1.24
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	3.10	1.32
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	9.10%	5.77%