Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Shares Up 4.4% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Freeport-McMoRan shares rose 4.4% on Monday, trading as high as $64.98 after closing at $61.65, though volume was below average.
• The company recently posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.57 versus $0.47 expected and revenue of $6.23 billion versus $5.73 billion estimated.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $65.14, even as several firms trimmed their price objectives.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 4.4% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $64.98 and last traded at $64.3770. 13,960,661 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 19,380,883 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.65.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FCX has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 price objective on Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $77.00 to $68.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.14.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Up 4.4%

The stock has a market capitalization of $92.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $61.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.39.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.10. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 10.34%.The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.73 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.24 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th were given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 15th. Freeport-McMoRan's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.96%.

Insider Transactions at Freeport-McMoRan

In other news, CFO Maree E. Robertson sold 48,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.55, for a total value of $2,985,175.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 79,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,917,475.70. This trade represents a 37.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.52, for a total value of $4,839,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 219,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,141,558.12. The trade was a 25.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 565,145 shares of company stock worth $35,839,918. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCX. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 7.9% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 2,011 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Essex Bank boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Essex Bank now owns 14,104 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $829,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Leo Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Leo Wealth LLC now owns 6,838 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 18,674 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $1,098,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Freeport-McMoRan

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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