Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX Holdings Decreased by Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich

Key Points

• Bank Julius Baer cut its Freeport-McMoRan stake by 18.8% in the third quarter, selling 32,127 shares and retaining 139,154 shares valued at approximately $9.76 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 80.77% of FCX.
• Freeport-McMoRan exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted EPS of $0.88 versus the $0.82 consensus and revenue of $7.55 billion, up 8.2% year over year. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.075 per share, for an annualized yield of about 0.5%.
• Analysts remain generally optimistic, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.30, although company insiders sold 102,848 shares worth roughly $7.9 million over the prior 90 days.

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich decreased its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 139,154 shares of the natural resource company's stock after selling 32,127 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich's holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $9,757,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Virtue Capital Management LLC raised its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 4,972 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $348,000 after buying an additional 712 shares during the last quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 26.8% during the third quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. now owns 101,270 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $7,089,000 after purchasing an additional 21,400 shares during the last quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 111.8% during the third quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 1,080 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the third quarter worth $26,179,000. Finally, ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the third quarter valued at $390,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

Shares of FCX stock opened at $62.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $90.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $71.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $65.26. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a one year low of $38.54 and a one year high of $80.24.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The natural resource company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $7.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.36 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 13.03% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 3.04 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th were paid a $0.0750 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Freeport-McMoRan's dividend payout ratio is currently 12.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 14,277 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total transaction of $992,251.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 54,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,795,951. The trade was a 20.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 80,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.56, for a total value of $6,284,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 211,016 shares in the company, valued at $16,577,416.96. The trade was a 27.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 102,848 shares of company stock worth $7,911,621 over the last ninety days. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on FCX. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Erste Group Bank began coverage on Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Thursday, August 27th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $66.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.30.

About Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan Inc NYSE: FCX is a global mining company primarily engaged in the exploration, development, and production of copper. Copper is used extensively in electrical wiring, construction, transportation, renewable energy systems, and other industrial applications. The company also produces gold and molybdenum, a metal used in steelmaking and other industrial processes, as well as certain other byproducts.

Freeport-McMoRan operates a portfolio of mining and processing assets in North America, South America, and Indonesia.

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