SEB Asset Management AB Invests $44.27 Million in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Key Points

• SEB Asset Management AB bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the first quarter, purchasing 753,144 shares valued at about $44.27 million.
• Freeport-McMoRan recently reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.57 and revenue of $6.23 billion, both above analyst expectations and up 8.8% from a year ago.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.075 per share, while analysts remain generally positive with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $68.77.

SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 753,144 shares of the natural resource company's stock, valued at approximately $44,270,000. SEB Asset Management AB owned approximately 0.05% of Freeport-McMoRan at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 49.0% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 221,838 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $11,267,000 after acquiring an additional 73,002 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 34.5% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,062,916 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $62,478,000 after purchasing an additional 272,726 shares during the period. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter worth $8,857,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 31.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 37,353,852 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $1,897,202,000 after purchasing an additional 8,891,743 shares during the period. Finally, Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne Allianz Polska S.A. increased its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 175.4% during the 4th quarter. Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne Allianz Polska S.A. now owns 1,379,760 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $70,078,000 after purchasing an additional 878,760 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company's stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 0.2%

FCX opened at $58.44 on Friday. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a one year low of $35.15 and a one year high of $72.28. The company has a market cap of $84.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.09, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.39. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $63.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.94.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.73 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 10.34%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.24 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Freeport-McMoRan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on FCX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $77.00 to $68.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $68.77.

Freeport-McMoRan Profile

Freeport-McMoRan Inc is a U.S.-based natural resources company primarily engaged in the exploration, mining and processing of copper, gold and molybdenum. Its operations encompass large-scale open-pit and underground mining as well as associated concentrator and milling facilities. The company produces copper in the form of concentrates and cathodes, and also recovers gold and molybdenum as co-products; its business model includes exploration, development, mining, beneficiation and the sale of bulk commodities to smelters and industrial customers.

Freeport-McMoRan conducts operations and development activities across multiple geographies, with substantial assets in the Americas and Indonesia.

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