Aberdeen Group plc Trims Stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc trimmed its position in Freeport‑McMoRan by 2.8% in Q4, selling 33,910 shares and holding 1,169,942 shares valued at about $59.42 million (≈0.08% of the company).
• Freeport beat Q4 estimates with $0.47 EPS versus $0.28 expected and $5.63B in revenue versus $5.42B expected, and analysts have a consensus Moderate Buy rating with an average price target of $62.75 (some firms raising targets up to $75).
• Insiders sold a total of 565,145 shares (~$35.84M) over the last quarter, including large sales by the CFO and CAO, while the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.075 (annualized $0.30, ~0.5% yield).

Aberdeen Group plc lowered its position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,169,942 shares of the natural resource company's stock after selling 33,910 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned about 0.08% of Freeport-McMoRan worth $59,421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in FCX. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 1,962.9% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 722 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 687 shares during the last quarter. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company's stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

Shares of FCX opened at $61.32 on Friday. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $27.66 and a fifty-two week high of $69.75. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $61.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $51.14. The stock has a market cap of $88.13 billion, a PE ratio of 40.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.48. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.19. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 8.50%.The company had revenue of $5.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.31 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Freeport-McMoRan's payout ratio is presently 19.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on FCX. CICC Research increased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $50.40 to $64.40 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley set a $70.00 target price on Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Argus upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $62.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Maree E. Robertson sold 48,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.55, for a total transaction of $2,985,175.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 79,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,917,475.70. This represents a 37.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 29,654 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $1,868,202.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 76,445 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,816,035. This trade represents a 27.95% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 565,145 shares of company stock worth $35,839,918 over the last quarter. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Freeport-McMoRan Profile

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.

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