FMC (NYSE:FMC) Stock Sees Unusually High Put Option Buying

Key Points

• FMC saw unusually heavy bearish options activity: Traders purchased 22,046 put options, nearly nine times the typical volume of 2,214 contracts.
• Analysts have cut price targets and ratings, with the consensus standing at “Reduce” and a $11.25 price target; recent targets range as low as $6.00.
• FMC shares fell to $4.92, near their 52-week low of $4.82, while the company reported a 17.5% year-over-year revenue decline and maintains a quarterly dividend yielding about 6.5%.

FMC Corporation (NYSE:FMC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 22,046 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 896% compared to the typical volume of 2,214 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FMC

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of FMC during the second quarter worth about $8,498,000. AXQ Capital LP increased its position in FMC by 109.9% during the second quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 366,661 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $4,217,000 after buying an additional 191,945 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in FMC by 142.4% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 235,089 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,704,000 after purchasing an additional 138,098 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of FMC during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,175,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of FMC in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,401,000. 91.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FMC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered shares of FMC from a "sector perform" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of FMC in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on FMC from $11.00 to $7.50 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Citigroup lowered their price target on FMC from $12.00 to $6.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of FMC from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $11.25.

FMC Stock Performance

FMC traded down $0.40 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $4.92. 3,459,058 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,154,545. The company has a market capitalization of $615.49 million, a P/E ratio of -0.22 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38. FMC has a fifty-two week low of $4.82 and a fifty-two week high of $30.95. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $10.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.92.

FMC (NYSE:FMC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.04. FMC had a positive return on equity of 11.35% and a negative net margin of 84.83%. The company had revenue of $841.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $895.14 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.69 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that FMC will post 1.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FMC Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 30th. FMC's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1.45%.

About FMC

FMC Corporation NYSE: FMC is an agricultural sciences company that develops and markets crop protection products and technologies. Its portfolio is designed to help farmers manage weeds, insects and diseases that can affect crop yields and quality.

The company's products include herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, biological crop protection products and seed treatment solutions. FMC also develops crop health technologies and digital tools intended to support more precise and efficient agricultural applications.

FMC serves farmers, agricultural retailers and distributors in major farming regions around the world, with products used across a broad range of crops.

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