CF Industries management check
CF · Materials · Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals · CEO Mr. Will
Filings as of
4 good · 1 to watch · 1 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Good
Have owners done well?
Beat its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $223, against $148 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Flag
Does pay follow performance?
Pay moved against returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of -0.43 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.8% of net income$13.7m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $1.8bn of net income.
- n/a
Do they own the stock?
No recent CEO filingNo open-market insider buying or selling in the last six months.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -8.5% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 0.6% of revenue in the latest year.
- Watch
Is leadership stable?
10 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Mr. Will. 10 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Materials.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 100 | 40 | |
| Pay for performance | 28 | 77 | |
| CEO cost | 60 | 40 | |
| Skin in the game | — | — | 38 |
| Dilution | 100 | 71 | |
| Stable leadership | 75 | 70 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Fertilizers & Agricultural Chemicals, by management score. CF Industries is 2nd of 24 in its sector.
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed March 17, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Mr. Will | $13.7m | $15.6m | $5.1m | $223 | $148 | $1.8bn |
| 2024 | — | $12.3m | $13.4m | $4.1m | $240 | $109 | $1.5bn |
| 2023 | — | $12.9m | $9.5m | $3.3m | $218 | $134 | $1.8bn |
| 2022 | — | $14.3m | $33.8m | $3.5m | $229 | $162 | $3.9bn |
| 2021 | — | $11.7m | $31.7m | $3.0m | $187 | $157 | $1.3bn |
The board says pay is tied most to Adjusted EBITDA. Its other key measures: Return on Net Assets (RONA), Total Shareholder Return (TSR).
Insiders and the CEO's stake
No open-market insider buying or selling in the last six months.
Leadership and governance on file
- Sep 3, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- May 5, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jan 13, 2026Leadership change8-K/A 5.02
- Jan 7, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 19, 2025Leadership change8-K/A 5.02
- Sep 8, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 24, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jan 6, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 20, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 5, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 17, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 7, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: May 4, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $6.9bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, and $189.0m of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $6.5bn | $11.2bn | $6.6bn | $5.9bn | $7.1bn |
| Net income | — | — | — | — | — |
| Stock-based pay | $30.0m | $41.0m | $37.0m | $36.0m | $45.0m |
| Buybacks | $539.0m | $1.3bn | $580.0m | $1.5bn | $1.4bn |
| Dividends | $260.0m | $306.0m | $311.0m | $364.0m | $326.0m |
| Diluted shares | 216m | 204m | 194m | 181m | 162m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.