Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Shares Down 2.9% on Analyst Downgrade

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)’s share price fell 2.9% during mid-day trading on Monday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $70.00 to $66.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Freeport-McMoRan traded as low as $54.17 and last traded at $54.6030. 14,022,335 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 33% from the average session volume of 20,878,076 shares. The stock had previously closed at $56.24.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on FCX. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $70.00 price objective on Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Maree E. Robertson sold 48,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.55, for a total transaction of $2,985,175.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 79,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,917,475.70. The trade was a 37.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.52, for a total transaction of $4,839,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 219,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,141,558.12. The trade was a 25.49% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 565,145 shares of company stock valued at $35,839,918. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCX. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 2.9%

The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.16, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.41. The business has a 50 day moving average of $61.34 and a 200-day moving average of $50.72.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $5.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.42 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The business’s revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.31 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is currently 19.87%.

About Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan Inc is a U.S.-based natural resources company primarily engaged in the exploration, mining and processing of copper, gold and molybdenum. Its operations encompass large-scale open-pit and underground mining as well as associated concentrator and milling facilities. The company produces copper in the form of concentrates and cathodes, and also recovers gold and molybdenum as co-products; its business model includes exploration, development, mining, beneficiation and the sale of bulk commodities to smelters and industrial customers.

Freeport-McMoRan conducts operations and development activities across multiple geographies, with substantial assets in the Americas and Indonesia.