FMC (NYSE:FMC) Shares Down 6.4% – What’s Next?

FMC Corporation (NYSE:FMC) shares were down 6.4% during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $5.30 and last traded at $5.2980. Approximately 1,036,558 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 4,081,197 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.66.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FMC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded FMC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $14.00 to $5.00 in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen raised FMC from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Seaport Research Partners set a $21.00 price target on FMC in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of FMC in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of FMC in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $11.68.

FMC Stock Down 7.5%

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $10.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $655.58 million, a P/E ratio of -0.24 and a beta of 0.45.

FMC (NYSE:FMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.04. FMC had a negative net margin of 84.83% and a positive return on equity of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $841.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $895.14 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that FMC Corporation will post 1.20 earnings per share for the current year.

FMC Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. FMC’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FMC

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FMC. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of FMC in the 2nd quarter worth $8,498,000. AXQ Capital LP boosted its stake in FMC by 109.9% during the second quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 366,661 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,217,000 after buying an additional 191,945 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in FMC by 142.4% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 235,089 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,704,000 after acquiring an additional 138,098 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in FMC during the second quarter worth about $1,175,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in FMC during the first quarter worth about $1,401,000. 91.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About FMC

FMC Corporation (NYSE: FMC) is an agricultural sciences company that develops, manufactures and markets crop protection products for farmers and other agricultural professionals. Its portfolio includes herbicides, insecticides and fungicides used to help protect crops from weeds, insects and diseases.

The company also develops biological and other crop health solutions, supported by research in areas such as plant science, chemistry and biotechnology. FMC’s products are used across a range of crops and growing conditions, and the company serves agricultural markets in North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia and other regions worldwide.

FMC traces its origins to 1883 and has evolved through acquisitions and investments in agricultural technology into a focused crop protection company.