Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Trading 1.7% Higher – Still a Buy?

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)’s share price rose 1.7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $60.71 and last traded at $60.3480. Approximately 19,671,314 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 9% from the average daily volume of 21,699,314 shares. The stock had previously closed at $59.34.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FCX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Clarkson Capital raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $46.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $47.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, CICC Research decreased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $51.60 to $42.30 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.06.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Up 1.7%

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $46.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.18. The company has a market capitalization of $86.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.74 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.84% and a net margin of 7.97%.Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.38 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 15th will be given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.13%.

Insider Activity at Freeport-McMoRan

In other news, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 28,423 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.99, for a total value of $1,364,019.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 105,294 shares in the company, valued at $5,053,059.06. This represents a 21.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 9,572 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.66, for a total value of $456,201.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 38,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,847,349.26. This trade represents a 19.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Callan Family Office LLC raised its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 229.9% in the 2nd quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 26,983 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,170,000 after buying an additional 18,803 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 215,058 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $9,323,000 after acquiring an additional 22,766 shares in the last quarter. Arrow Capital Pty Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 88.5% in the second quarter. Arrow Capital Pty Ltd now owns 113,100 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $4,903,000 after purchasing an additional 53,100 shares during the last quarter. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 8.1% in the second quarter. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC now owns 331,549 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $14,373,000 after purchasing an additional 24,803 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 5.7% in the third quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 383,488 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $15,213,000 after purchasing an additional 20,586 shares in the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.