Union Square Park Capital Management LLC Makes New $1.76 Million Investment in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Union Square Park Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 30,000 shares of the natural resource company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,763,000. Freeport-McMoRan makes up approximately 1.0% of Union Square Park Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Steph & Co. grew its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% during the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the first quarter worth $29,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 1.5%

FCX stock opened at $62.54 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $89.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.81, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.37. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 1-year low of $35.15 and a 1-year high of $72.28. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $63.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.12. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 10.63%. The company had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.75 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is 14.78%.

Freeport-McMoRan News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Freeport-McMoRan this week:

• Positive Sentiment: FCX reported Q2 adjusted EPS of $0.74 and revenue of $7.03 billion, both ahead of Wall Street estimates, helped by higher realized copper and gold prices. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Management said the Grasberg ramp remains on schedule, U.S. operations are improving, and the brownfield copper pipeline is expanding, which supports longer-term production growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target on FCX to $73 from $70, signaling continued analyst confidence in the stock’s upside. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several recent writeups highlighted strong income growth, free cash flow, and the benefit of firmer copper prices, reinforcing the investment case for FCX. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on FCX shares. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $78.00 price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. HSBC lifted their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $72.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.18.

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.