Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Key Points

• Adams Diversified Equity Fund increased its Freeport-McMoRan stake by 51.3% in the fourth quarter, adding 102,300 shares to reach 301,700 shares valued at about $15.3 million.
• Freeport-McMoRan posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results, reporting EPS of $0.57 versus estimates of $0.47 and revenue of $6.23 billion versus $5.73 billion expected. Revenue rose 8.8% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive on FCX, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.86, even as some firms adjusted their targets higher or lower.

Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. grew its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) by 51.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 301,700 shares of the natural resource company's stock after acquiring an additional 102,300 shares during the period. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.'s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $15,323,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 130,332,957 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $6,619,611,000 after acquiring an additional 1,572,769 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 63,880,757 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $3,244,504,000 after acquiring an additional 622,343 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 62,873,136 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $3,193,327,000 after acquiring an additional 395,226 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 37,353,852 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $1,897,202,000 after purchasing an additional 8,891,743 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 190.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 36,494,793 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $1,431,326,000 after purchasing an additional 23,950,557 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company's stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Up 2.9%

NYSE:FCX opened at $68.28 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.15 billion, a PE ratio of 36.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.35. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $64.24 and a 200-day moving average of $59.05. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.15 and a 52 week high of $72.09. The company has a current ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.73 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 9.88%. Freeport-McMoRan's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.24 EPS. Analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th were paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 15th. Freeport-McMoRan's payout ratio is presently 15.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC raised their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $72.00 to $75.00 in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $71.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $66.00 price objective (down from $70.00) on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Friday, April 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.86.

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.

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