Sanford C. Bernstein Cuts Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Price Target to $53.50

Key Points

• Sanford C. Bernstein cut its price target on Freeport-McMoRan to $53.50 (from $54) and rates the stock "market perform," implying about a 12.8% downside from the prior close.
• Analyst views remain mixed-to-bullish overall: the MarketBeat consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $65.66, and several firms (e.g., Bank of America $81, Wells Fargo $77, Goldman $70) have higher targets or buy ratings.
• Operationally, Freeport beat Q1 EPS estimates ($0.57 vs. $0.47) but cut 2026/2027 copper sales by ~300 million pounds due to a slower Grasberg ramp, which prompted an ~10% intraday share drop and subsequent analyst estimate revisions; insiders have also sold notable stakes recently.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) had its price target cut by stock analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from $54.00 to $53.50 in a research note issued on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "market perform" rating on the natural resource company's stock. Sanford C. Bernstein's target price indicates a potential downside of 12.81% from the company's previous close.

FCX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $64.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $65.66.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE FCX traded down $0.12 during trading on Friday, reaching $61.36. 3,672,660 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 19,804,770. Freeport-McMoRan has a 52-week low of $34.45 and a 52-week high of $70.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.50 and a 200-day moving average of $53.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.48.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.10. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 8.50%.The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.24 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 219,181 shares in the company, valued at $14,141,558.12. This represents a 25.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Maree E. Robertson sold 48,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.55, for a total value of $2,985,175.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 79,894 shares in the company, valued at $4,917,475.70. This represents a 37.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 565,145 shares of company stock worth $35,839,918. 0.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCX. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,962.9% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 722 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 687 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. increased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% during the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

Here are the key news stories impacting Freeport-McMoRan this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 EPS and revenue beat estimates (EPS $0.57 vs. ~$0.47 consensus) driven by higher copper, gold and molybdenum prices, supporting near-term profitability. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Commodity tailwinds: rising copper prices were a key driver of the beat and underpin medium-term cash flow expectations for FCX. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Upgraded analyst views and higher price targets ahead of the quarter (e.g., Deutsche Bank raised its target), supporting longer-term bullish thesis. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Company released Q1 presentation, press release and full earnings call transcript — useful for modeling but not market-moving by itself. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call transcripts are available for deeper read on management commentary and timeline for Grasberg ramp. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Company cut 2026 (and 2027) copper sales volume by ~300 million pounds due to a slower-than-expected ramp at Grasberg after last year’s fatal mud rush — this materially reduces near-term supply and revenue outlook. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares plunged (~10% intraday reported) after the production downgrade despite the earnings beat — the production miss dominates near-term valuation. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downward revisions: some firms (e.g., Scotiabank) trimmed earnings estimates following the weaker output outlook, adding pressure to near-term sentiment and target-price revisions. Article Title

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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