Freeport-McMoRan Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:FCX)

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) saw some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors purchased 84,576 call options on the company. This is an increase of 27% compared to the typical volume of 66,384 call options.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

Shares of FCX stock traded down $5.90 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $63.79. The company had a trading volume of 10,202,974 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,206,311. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $63.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.14. Freeport-McMoRan has a one year low of $35.15 and a one year high of $72.09. The firm has a market cap of $91.70 billion, a PE ratio of 33.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.39.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.73 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.24 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is 15.96%.

Institutional Trading of Freeport-McMoRan

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCX. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Steph & Co. grew its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% during the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on FCX. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $71.00 to $67.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $54.00 to $53.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $77.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.04.

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.