The last two years have not been easy for investors in many sectors, but those who have been involved in the agriculture industry might have felt a harder hit than others. Nutrien (TSX:NTR) is one of the foremost agriculture-related stocks on the TSX. After two consecutive years of significantly lagging behind the rest of the economy, the $47.51 billion market cap provider of crop inputs and services worldwide might be staging a comeback.
As of this writing, Nutrien stock trades for $98.29 per share, up by 50.4% from its 52-week low. Year to date, Nutrien stock is enjoying a 13.25% rally, showing us that the stock has continued the momentum it had toward the end of last year.
The only question is: Is Nutrien stock worth buying at current levels? Are these gains sustainable, or has the market already priced in the good news?
Today, I will discuss Nutrien stock, why it might be on the rise right now, how the business itself is doing, and whether the ongoing rally warrants buying, holding, or selling the stock.
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The turnaround
Nutrien is one of the largest suppliers of fertilizers and other crop inputs worldwide. It supplies potash, nitrogen, and phosphate products to farmers; essential inputs to achieve higher crop yields. The company also runs a massive network of retail stores that provide more direct support to growers. This way, Nutrien enjoys more exposure to revenue-generating opportunities across several stages of the supply chain in agriculture.
The demand for crop inputs has always been high, and is only bound to increase as the global population grows. The company’s recent recovery could be attributed to improving sentiment about the demand and pricing conditions in the agriculture sector. After a substantially challenging environment for crop input prices, things have become more balanced in terms of supply and demand. The shift has eased pressure on profit margins for the company and made its earnings outlook more predictable.
The fact that the company’s cost management has been disciplined, its investors are seeing the benefits of the company traversing a tough economic cycle with better operational efficiency to manage its balance sheet well. These factors could have contributed to instilling more faith in investors, resulting in an improved performance on the stock market.
Foolish takeaway
In terms of the financials, the September 2025-ending quarter saw Nutrien report US$464 million in net earnings attributable to investors, marking a substantial improvement from weaker periods in earlier quarters. The company continues to invest in improving production assets, bolstering its retail platform, and improving efficiency and customer reach instead of running after short-term volume growth.
The rebound by the company seems solid and sustainable. I think it might warrant a place in your portfolio if you have a long investment horizon. However, it is important to take things with a grain of salt. The company’s future gains only depend on real-world conditions. If the markets remain stable and demand keeps going up, it can paint a pretty picture for investors who want to remain invested for the long haul.
