Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $9.45, but opened at $10.67. Cleveland-Cliffs shares last traded at $11.2070, with a volume of 10,932,576 shares trading hands.

The mining company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.21) by $0.01. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative net margin of 4.56% and a negative return on equity of 13.37%. The business had revenue of $5.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.50) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

More Cleveland-Cliffs News

Here are the key news stories impacting Cleveland-Cliffs this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Cleveland-Cliffs posted Q2 results that beat expectations on both earnings and revenue, helped by stronger steel pricing that improved margins even as shipment volumes declined. CLF Q2 Earnings and Sales Beat Estimates on Higher Steel Pricing
• Positive Sentiment: The company reported a sharp jump in adjusted EBITDA, returned to positive free cash flow, and gave a notably optimistic outlook, with investors focusing on the prospect of stronger profitability ahead. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc (CLF) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Strong EBITDA Growth and Positive …
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts turned more constructive, including Glj Research upgrading the stock to buy and lifting its price target, which added to the bullish sentiment around the name. Cleveland-Cliffs upgraded by Glj Research
• Positive Sentiment: Trading activity was also supportive, with reports of unusual call-option buying and multiple articles highlighting CLF as a momentum stock with value appeal.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target but kept an “equal weight” rating, suggesting some upside remains but not a full endorsement of the rally. Wells Fargo price target raised on CLF
• Neutral Sentiment: The company also announced a leadership change, promoting CFO Celso Goncalves to President and CFO, which is more of a governance update than a direct earnings driver. Cleveland-Cliffs Announces Promotion of Chief Financial Officer
• Negative Sentiment: Not all analyst commentary was supportive: one report said brokerage consensus remains “Reduce,” and another noted Wells Fargo’s new target is still below the current share price, reflecting lingering skepticism about the stock’s valuation and durability of the rebound.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Argus raised Cleveland-Cliffs to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price objective on Cleveland-Cliffs from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Cleveland-Cliffs from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Cleveland-Cliffs from $14.00 to $11.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Celso L. Goncalves, Jr. sold 214,308 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.41, for a total transaction of $2,873,870.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 184,542 shares in the company, valued at $2,474,708.22. This trade represents a 53.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.95% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs during the 1st quarter valued at $339,000. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 27.4% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 49,955 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $380,000 after acquiring an additional 10,733 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 143,264 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,088,000 after acquiring an additional 6,073 shares during the last quarter. CW Advisors LLC raised its stake in Cleveland-Cliffs by 47.4% in the 2nd quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 22,167 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 7,127 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Cleveland-Cliffs by 20.3% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,081,241 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $23,417,000 after acquiring an additional 520,120 shares during the period. 67.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.81 billion, a PE ratio of -7.37 and a beta of 2.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.89 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.03.

Cleveland-Cliffs Company Profile

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc is a leading North American producer of iron ore pellets and flat-rolled steel products. Tracing its roots to 1847, the company has evolved from an iron-ore mining concern in the Great Lakes region into a fully integrated steelmaker. Today, Cleveland-Cliffs operates iron ore mining complexes in Michigan and Minnesota as well as steelmaking and finishing facilities across the United States.

The company’s integrated platform begins with direct control of key raw materials, including iron ore and scrap, and extends through every stage of steel production.