Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX Stock Acquired by Asset Management One Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Asset Management One increased its Freeport-McMoRan stake by 2.6% in the third quarter, adding 16,252 shares to hold 645,991 shares valued at approximately $45.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 80.77% of FCX.
• Freeport-McMoRan’s third-quarter results exceeded expectations, with adjusted EPS of $0.88 versus the $0.82 consensus and revenue up 8.2% year over year to $7.55 billion, driven by stronger copper and molybdenum prices.
• Analysts remain generally optimistic, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and a $75.67 average price target. However, lower production, higher costs and a trimmed copper-sales outlook present near-term operating risks.

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) by 2.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 645,991 shares of the natural resource company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,252 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $45,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 11.6% during the second quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,539 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Breakwater Capital Group lifted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 15,930 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $1,115,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Signature Wealth Management Partners LLC boosted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.4% during the third quarter. Signature Wealth Management Partners LLC now owns 12,271 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $859,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 2.6% during the second quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 6,788 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hartford Financial Management Inc. grew its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 18,147 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $1,270,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.77% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

Here are the key news stories impacting Freeport-McMoRan this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 earnings exceeded expectations. Freeport-McMoRan reported adjusted earnings of $0.88 per share, above the $0.82 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 8.2% year over year to $7.55 billion, topping forecasts. Higher copper and molybdenum prices more than offset weaker production and sales volumes. Freeport McMoRan Q3 revenue rises as copper prices boost earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Grasberg recovery and expansion plans support the long-term outlook. Management is targeting copper sales above 4 billion pounds by 2028, with production expected to benefit from the Grasberg recovery, leaching technology and expansion projects. FCX Q3 Earnings Call Highlights Grasberg Recovery and Growth Plans
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish despite revised targets. UBS lowered its target to $85 from $88 but maintained a Buy rating; JPMorgan cut its target to $90 from $92 while keeping an Overweight rating. Wells Fargo reduced its target to $79 from $87, also retaining an Overweight rating. Each target implies substantial upside from recent levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Potential molybdenum expansion adds an additional growth opportunity. Freeport is evaluating increased molybdenum supply from its Colorado mine, which could diversify production and benefit from strong demand for the specialty metal. Freeport-McMoRan weighs boosting molybdenum supply at Colorado mine
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term operating concerns temper the bullish reaction. Freeport trimmed its copper sales outlook as the Grasberg recovery progresses. Earlier results also showed lower production, rising costs and sharply reduced gold sales, making the company more dependent on elevated copper prices. Freeport trims copper sales outlook as Grasberg recovery advances

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on FCX shares. Erste Group Bank began coverage on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Barclays raised their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.67.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

Shares of FCX stock opened at $66.53 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $95.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.77, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50 day moving average of $71.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $65.17. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.54 and a 52 week high of $80.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The natural resource company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.06. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 10.63% and a net margin of 11.39%. The business had revenue of $7.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, October 15th will be issued a $0.0750 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 15th. Freeport-McMoRan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.78%.

Insider Activity

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 4,773 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $334,110.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 36,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,520,000. The trade was a 11.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 80,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.56, for a total transaction of $6,284,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 211,016 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,577,416.96. This trade represents a 27.49% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 102,848 shares of company stock worth $7,911,621 in the last 90 days. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Freeport-McMoRan Company Profile

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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