Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Acquires 373,992 Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Key Points

• Mirae Asset Global Investments acquired 373,992 shares of Freeport-McMoRan worth approximately $26.2 million during the third quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 80.77% of the company.
• Freeport-McMoRan reported quarterly earnings of $0.88 per share, beating estimates by $0.06, while revenue rose 8.2% year over year to $7.55 billion.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $75.30; the company also pays a $0.075 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 0.5% annual yield.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 373,992 shares of the natural resource company's stock, valued at approximately $26,179,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 34.5% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,062,916 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $62,478,000 after acquiring an additional 272,726 shares during the period. Iowa State Bank grew its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 50.7% in the 3rd quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 50,144 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $3,510,000 after purchasing an additional 16,868 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 4.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,687,524 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $169,018,000 after purchasing an additional 117,888 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1.4% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 9,970,872 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $627,068,000 after purchasing an additional 141,738 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 17.1% in the second quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,249,858 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $78,604,000 after purchasing an additional 182,714 shares during the period. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

NYSE FCX opened at $62.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.42, a PEG ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.39. The business's 50 day moving average is $71.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.26. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.54 and a 12-month high of $80.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The natural resource company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.06. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 13.03%. The business had revenue of $7.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.36 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect 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 given 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 presently 12.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, Director Lydia Kennard sold 3,798 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.11, for a total value of $300,459.78. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 122,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,706,955.22. This trade represents a 3.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Ellie Mikes sold 4,773 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $334,110.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 36,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,520,000. This trade represents a 11.71% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 102,848 shares of company stock worth $7,911,621. 0.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on FCX. Barclays upped their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $73.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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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