USA Financial Formulas Buys New Holdings in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Key Points

• USA Financial Formulas purchased 14,742 shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the third quarter, valued at approximately $1.03 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 80.77% of FCX.
• Freeport-McMoRan reported quarterly earnings of $0.74 per share, beating estimates of $0.62, while revenue reached $7.03 billion. Analysts expect full-year earnings of $2.90 per share.
• FCX shares opened at $69.33, below the analyst consensus target of $76.22; the stock holds a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.075 per share, yielding approximately 0.4%.

USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 14,742 shares of the natural resource company's stock, valued at approximately $1,032,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCX. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 34.5% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,062,916 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $62,478,000 after purchasing an additional 272,726 shares in the last quarter. Iowa State Bank lifted its holdings 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. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1.4% in the 2nd 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. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 4.6% in the 2nd 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. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 17.1% in the 2nd 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.77% of the company's stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE FCX opened at $69.33 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $72.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.62. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a one year low of $38.54 and a one year high of $80.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 2.07. The firm has a market cap of $99.57 billion, a PE ratio of 34.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.39.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.12. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 10.63%. The business had revenue of $7.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.90 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.0750 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Freeport-McMoRan's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 14,277 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $992,251.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 54,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,795,951. This trade represents a 20.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 4,773 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 36,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,520,000. This trade represents a 11.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 110,398 shares of company stock valued at $8,387,271 in the last quarter. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America raised their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Erste Group Bank started coverage on Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Freedom Broker cut Freeport-McMoRan from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. UBS Group increased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. One 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.22.

Freeport-McMoRan 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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