Nuveen LLC Takes Position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc., purchasing approximately **9.69 million shares** valued at about **$366.96 million**, representing **0.67%** of the company's stock by the end of the reporting period.
• Freeport-McMoRan reported **earnings of $0.54 per share** for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with a total revenue of **$7.58 billion**—an increase of **14.5%** year-over-year.
• The company also declared a **quarterly dividend** of **$0.15**, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of **1.4%**, with a payout ratio of **22.73%**.

Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 9,692,530 shares of the natural resource company's stock, valued at approximately $366,959,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.67% of Freeport-McMoRan at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of FCX. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 21.9% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 31,885,531 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $1,214,203,000 after acquiring an additional 5,735,171 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 13.7% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 21,942,063 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $830,726,000 after purchasing an additional 2,642,810 shares in the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. raised its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 1,354.9% during the first quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 2,641,129 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $100,001,000 after purchasing an additional 2,459,598 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 21.7% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,968,781 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $453,138,000 after buying an additional 2,133,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 125,042,285 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $4,734,101,000 after purchasing an additional 1,822,987 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.77% of the company's stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

Shares of FCX traded up $0.57 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $42.72. 13,118,636 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 17,151,302. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $42.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.14. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.66 and a 1 year high of $52.61. The stock has a market cap of $61.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.63.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.09. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 7.45% and a return on equity of 7.37%. The business had revenue of $7.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 15th were issued 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 is presently 22.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on FCX. Stifel Canada upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $52.00 price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $51.00.

Freeport-McMoRan Company Profile

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.