Scotiabank Cuts Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Price Target to $71.00

Key Points

• Scotiabank cut its price target on Freeport‑McMoRan to $71.00 from $72.00 and kept a "sector perform" rating, implying roughly a 3.9% upside from the prior close.
• Overall analyst sentiment is mostly positive—2 Strong Buy, 17 Buy and 4 Hold—giving a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.20, with several firms (Goldman Sachs, BMO, Citi) issuing recent buy/outperform views and targets in the $67–$70 range.
• Freeport beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.47 vs. $0.28) and has a market cap around $98.3B, but insiders have been net sellers recently, disposing of about 565,145 shares (~$35.8M) in the past 90 days.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by investment analysts at Scotiabank from $72.00 to $71.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has a "sector perform" rating on the natural resource company's stock. Scotiabank's target price would suggest a potential upside of 3.86% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on FCX. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. CICC Research lifted their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $50.40 to $64.40 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.20.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

Shares of FCX opened at $68.36 on Tuesday. 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's fifty day moving average price is $61.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.18. Freeport-McMoRan has a 1-year low of $32.12 and a 1-year high of $69.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.25 billion, a PE ratio of 45.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.48.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $5.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.42 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 8.50%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.31 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.68 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 11,000 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.03, for a total value of $682,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 40,773 shares in the company, valued at $2,529,149.19. The trade was a 21.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 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 directly owned 79,894 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,917,475.70. The trade was a 37.77% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 565,145 shares of company stock valued at $35,839,918. Insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Freeport-McMoRan

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Leo Wealth LLC increased its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 924 shares of the natural resource company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,687 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 1,840 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,119 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is currently 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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