Compass Minerals International (CMP) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $1.00B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 507.83K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): ―
• Beta (1Y): 0.91
• Revenue Growth: 11.32%
• EPS Growth: 61.60%
• Country: US
• Employees: 2,000
• Sector: Basic Materials
• Sector Strength: 58
• Industry: Industrial Materials
• EPS (TTM): 0.43
• Shares Outstanding: 41,863,274
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 655,079
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 507,830
• PEG Ratio: 0.16
• Price to Book (P/B): 3.43
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.65
• P/FCF Ratio: 6.27
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.85
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 1.39
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 8.44
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 12.44
• 1Y Price Target: $22.00
• Price Target Upside: -8.30% Downside
• Rating Consensus: Hold
• Number of Analyst Covering: 4
• EPS Forecast (FY): 0.69
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $1.22B

• Rating: 55 Neutral
• Price Target: $24.50 ▲(2.13% Upside)

The score is supported primarily by the earnings call’s raised FY2026 outlook, sharp Q1 profitability improvement, and reported deleveraging progress. This is tempered by only mid-tier underlying financial quality (ongoing net losses and high leverage), weak-to-mixed near-term technicals (below the 20-day average with RSI < 50), and limited valuation support due to a negative P/E.

Positive Factors

Profitability Recovery

Quarterly return to net profitability and a doubling of adjusted EBITDA reflect durable operational leverage and execution. Sustained profitability improvement supports reinvestment in operations, reduces reliance on external financing, and increases resilience to seasonal swings in salt and agriculture cycles.

Deleveraging & Liquidity

Material reduction in leverage and a multi-hundred-million dollar liquidity buffer materially lowers refinancing and covenant risk. Improved balance-sheet flexibility supports capex, maintenance, and the ability to weather weak seasons while pursuing strategic allotments or asset optimization.

Strong Core Volumes & Plant Nutrition Turnaround

Robust salt volume growth and improving plant nutrition pricing/margins indicate market share capture and product mix improvement. These structural demand and pricing trends underpin more consistent revenue streams and strengthen per-ton economics beyond short-term seasonal spikes.

Negative Factors

High Leverage

A high debt load and reduced equity cushion raise long-term financial risk: interest costs and refinancing exposure could constrain investment in operations and growth. Persistent leverage limits strategic optionality if volumes or prices soften, prolonging recovery timelines.

Goderich Operational Constraints

Prolonged development and downtime at a key mine reduce production flexibility and raise unit costs. Structural underperformance at a major asset can depress available supply, increase unit operating costs, and force reliance on higher-cost sourcing or inventory, pressuring long-term margins.

Inventory & Logistics Limits

A deliberate low-inventory stance and rising distribution costs reduce the firm's ability to monetize surge demand and compress per-ton margins. Structurally higher logistics expenses and constrained surge capacity can cap revenue upside in volatile weather cycles and raise working-capital needs.

Compass Minerals International Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Compass Minerals International, Inc., produces and sells essential minerals primarily in the United States, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Salt, Plant Nutrition North America, and Plant Nutrition South America. The Salt segment offers sodium chloride and magnesium chloride, including rock salt, mechanically and solar evaporated salt, and brine and flake magnesium chloride products; and purchases potassium chloride and calcium chloride to sell as finished products or to blend with salt to produce specialty products. This segment provides products for use as a deicer for roadways, consumer, and professional use; as an ingredient in chemical production; for water treatment, human, and animal nutrition; and for various other consumer and industrial uses, as well as records management services. The Plant Nutrition North America segment offers sulfate of potash specialty fertilizers in various grades, including agricultural products that are used in broadcast spreaders, direct application, and liquid fertilizer solutions; turf products used by the turf and ornamental markets, as well as for blends used on golf course greens; organic products under the Protassium+ brand; and micronutrient products under the Wolf Trax and other brands. This segment provides its products to distributors and retailers of crop inputs, as well as growers. The Plant Nutrition South America segment offers various specialty plant nutrients and supplements; water and wastewater treatment chemicals for cleaning, decontaminating, and purifying water; and process chemicals for industrial use. The company was formerly known as Salt Holdings Corporation and changed its name to Compass Minerals International, Inc. in December 2003. Compass Minerals International, Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas.

How the Company Makes Money

Compass Minerals generates revenue primarily through the sale of its salt and plant nutrition products. The Salt segment contributes a significant portion of the company's earnings, particularly through the sale of deicing salt during winter months, which is essential for road safety in colder climates. Additionally, the company earns revenue from its industrial and consumer salt products. The Plant Nutrition segment provides another key revenue stream, with sales of specialty fertilizers and other nutrients aimed at improving agricultural productivity. Partnerships with agricultural distributors and retailers enhance market access for its plant nutrition products. Furthermore, the company's focus on efficiency and cost management, along with strategic pricing, supports its profitability and revenue generation efforts.

Compass Minerals International Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Turnaround progress is visible with revenue up 7.1% TTM, EBITDA/EBIT back to positive, and positive free cash flow ($94.1M). Offsetting this, net income is still negative (~-2.8% margin) and the balance sheet is highly levered (debt-to-equity ~3.44x), which raises risk and limits flexibility.

Income Statement

Results are improving but still inconsistent. TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months) revenue grew 7.1% and profitability rebounded from deep losses in FY2024 (EBITDA and EBIT turned positive), but net income remains negative (about -2.8% margin). Gross margin in TTM is modest (~16.5%) and below FY2023 levels, highlighting ongoing cost/price pressure and limited cushion if end-markets soften.

Balance Sheet

Leverage is the key constraint. Total debt is high relative to equity, with debt-to-equity around 3.44x in TTM (and ~3.85x in FY2025), and returns on equity are negative due to losses. While the asset base is sizable, the reduced equity buffer versus prior years raises financial risk and limits flexibility if earnings weaken or rates stay elevated.

Cash Flow

Cash generation is a relative bright spot. TTM operating cash flow is solid ($164.8M) with positive free cash flow ($94.1M), a major improvement versus FY2024 when free cash flow was negative. However, TTM free cash flow declined ~26.5% versus the prior period and cash flow does not fully cover profits given net losses, indicating execution and working-capital swings can still create volatility.

Breakdown	TTM	Sep 2025	Sep 2024	Sep 2023	Sep 2022	Sep 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	1.33B	1.24B	1.12B	1.20B	1.24B	1.15B
Gross Profit	219.60M	190.70M	195.00M	233.90M	199.80M	171.70M
EBITDA	149.10M	118.00M	-13.70M	180.70M	39.40M	173.40M
Net Income	-37.60M	-79.80M	-206.10M	15.50M	-36.70M	-213.30M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	1.53B	1.54B	1.64B	1.82B	1.64B	1.63B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	46.70M	59.70M	20.20M	38.70M	46.10M	18.10M
Total Debt	896.90M	901.60M	917.50M	805.30M	947.60M	935.40M
Total Liabilities	1.27B	1.30B	1.32B	1.30B	1.39B	1.34B
Stockholders Equity	260.50M	234.10M	316.60M	521.00M	257.00M	293.10M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	94.10M	128.00M	-99.80M	-48.30M	23.80M	90.90M
Operating Cash Flow	164.80M	197.70M	14.40M	101.10M	120.50M	162.70M
Investing Cash Flow	-51.10M	-50.00M	-116.10M	-173.00M	-80.00M	253.20M
Financing Cash Flow	-114.30M	-108.30M	83.10M	64.00M	-14.30M	-439.60M

Compass Minerals International Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 23.99
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CMP, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 23.99 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 24.19, above the 50-day MA of 21.87, and above the 200-day MA of 19.74, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of 0.35 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 53.32 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 50.32 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for CMP.

Compass Minerals International Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
Sector *	61 Neutral	$10.43B	7.12	-0.05%	2.87%	2.86%	-36.73%
NEXA	61 Neutral	$1.58B	-97.39	-1.64%	1.14%	7.92%	91.83%
UAMY	60 Neutral	$1.07B	-185.85	-10.59%	―	240.12%	0.98%
CMP	55 Neutral	$1.00B	-26.21	-14.48%	―	11.32%	61.60%
GSM	55 Neutral	$985.38M	-7.27	-16.00%	1.17%	-16.89%	-403.77%
ABAT	54 Neutral	$500.50M	-9.43	-43.52%	―	821.40%	44.70%

Compass Minerals International Corporate Events

Compass Minerals wins preliminary approval of derivative settlement

On October 24, 2025, Compass Minerals International, acting as a nominal defendant, entered into a stipulation to settle two stockholder derivative lawsuits in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas that alleged certain current and former directors and officers breached fiduciary duties between February 8, 2023, and March 25, 2024, by causing the company to issue misleading disclosures about safety testing and contract prospects for its magnesium chloride-based aerial fire retardants. On December 10, 2025, the court granted preliminary approval for the settlement, which, if finally approved at a February 20, 2026 hearing, will dismiss the actions with prejudice, require Compass to adopt and maintain specified corporate governance reforms, and provide for $850,000 in legal fees to be paid by the company’s insurers and potential service awards to the two plaintiffs, underscoring both the governance implications for Compass and the absence of direct monetary recovery for shareholders.

The most recent analyst rating on (CMP) stock is a Hold with a $19.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Compass Minerals International stock, see the CMP Stock Forecast page.

Compass Minerals refreshes board with four new directors

On December 18, 2025, Compass Minerals expanded its board of directors from eight to 12 members as part of a board refreshment initiative, appointing four new directors—Russell Ball, Denise Merle, Mark Roberts and David Safran—each to serve until the 2026 annual meeting while assigning them to key committees including Audit, Compensation, Nominating and Corporate Governance, Environmental, Health, Safety and Sustainability, and a newly created Capital Allocation and Technical Committee. The reshaped board is intended to bolster expertise in mining, industrial operations, salt and plant nutrition, and corporate governance to support the company’s back-to-basics strategy and operational efficiency goals, while several existing directors, including representatives of major shareholder Koch Minerals & Trading and long-serving director Lori Walker, will not stand for reelection at the 2026 meeting, and chair Joe Reece is expected to transition off the board by or before the 2027 annual meeting as the board size is gradually reduced back to eight members.

The most recent analyst rating on (CMP) stock is a Hold with a $19.50 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Compass Minerals International stock, see the CMP Stock Forecast page.