FMC (NYSE:FMC) Stock Price Up 7% on Earnings Beat

Shares of FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC - Get Free Report) rose 7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $65.38 and last traded at $65.23. Approximately 585,349 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 1,910,481 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.98.

The basic materials company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $918.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. FMC had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 29.45%. The company's revenue was down 31.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.77 earnings per share.

FMC Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.47%. FMC's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas lowered shares of FMC from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $56.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on FMC in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Loop Capital boosted their price target on FMC from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Bank of America lowered FMC from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $60.00 to $57.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded FMC from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $71.88.

Insider Activity at FMC

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Sandifer purchased 2,150 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.22 per share, for a total transaction of $127,323.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 50,088 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,966,211.36. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.81% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of FMC

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FMC. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of FMC in the first quarter worth $27,000. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in FMC in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in FMC during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. bought a new stake in shares of FMC during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of FMC by 143.1% in the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 508 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.86% of the company's stock.

FMC Trading Up 9.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $8.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $60.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.52.

About FMC

FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company, provides crop protection, plant health, and professional pest and turf management products. It develops, markets, and sells crop protection chemicals that includes insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides; and biologicals, crop nutrition, and seed treatment products, which are used in agriculture to enhance crop yield and quality by controlling a range of insects, weeds, and diseases, as well as in non-agricultural markets for pest control.