Northern Trust Corp Sells 157,981 Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp has reduced its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.0%, now owning approximately 16.28 million shares valued at $616.48 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Vanguard Group and Goldman Sachs, have increased their positions in Freeport-McMoRan, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• Freeport-McMoRan recently reported quarterly earnings of $0.54 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates, along with a quarterly dividend of $0.15, reflecting a payout ratio of 22.73%.

Northern Trust Corp decreased its position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) by 1.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 16,283,131 shares of the natural resource company's stock after selling 157,981 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.13% of Freeport-McMoRan worth $616,479,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Stratos Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 238.5% in the first quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 64,519 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $2,443,000 after purchasing an additional 45,458 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 18.5% in the first quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 39,571 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $1,498,000 after acquiring an additional 6,188 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 2.2% in the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 421,469 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $15,957,000 after acquiring an additional 8,989 shares in the last quarter. Financial Sense Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 527.9% in the first quarter. Financial Sense Advisors Inc. now owns 76,127 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $2,882,000 after acquiring an additional 64,003 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anderson Hoagland & Co. boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 27.6% in the first quarter. Anderson Hoagland & Co. now owns 109,565 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $4,148,000 after acquiring an additional 23,695 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.77% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 8,584 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total value of $343,531.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 48,333 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,934,286.66. The trade was a 15.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Up 3.6%

Shares of FCX stock traded up $1.52 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $43.24. 10,819,626 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,287,120. The company's 50-day moving average price is $43.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market cap of $62.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.63. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.66 and a 12 month high of $52.61.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $7.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.85 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.37% and a net margin of 7.45%.Freeport-McMoRan's quarterly revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th were given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Freeport-McMoRan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on FCX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $42.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Stifel Canada upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Bank of America reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $56.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $51.00.

About Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan Inc engages in the mining of mineral properties in North America, South America, and Indonesia. It primarily explores for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and other metals. The company's assets include the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita, and Miami in Arizona; Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico; and Henderson and Climax in Colorado, North America, as well as Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile.