Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (FCX) To Go Ex-Dividend on April 15th

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.075 per share by the natural resource company on Friday, May 1st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 15th.

Freeport-McMoRan has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.6%per year over the last three years. Freeport-McMoRan has a dividend payout ratio of 13.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Freeport-McMoRan to earn $2.16 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.30 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 13.9%.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

NYSE FCX opened at $55.91 on Friday. Freeport-McMoRan has a 52-week low of $27.66 and a 52-week high of $69.75. The stock has a market cap of $80.36 billion, a PE ratio of 37.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $61.39 and a 200-day moving average of $50.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 2.29.

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

Insider Activity at Freeport-McMoRan

In related news, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $14,141,558.12. This represents a 25.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Richard C. Adkerson sold 248,031 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.80, for a total value of $15,576,346.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 3,509,119 shares in the company, valued at $220,372,673.20. This trade represents a 6.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 565,145 shares of company stock worth $35,839,918 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

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

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.