UBS Group Increases Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Price Target to $74.00

Key Points

• UBS raised its price target on Freeport‑McMoRan to $74 (from $66) and kept a buy rating, implying about a 20.6% upside from the current share price.
• Freeport beat Q1 EPS expectations ($0.57 vs. ~$0.47) but cut 2026/2027 copper sales by roughly 300 million pounds due to a slower Grasberg ramp, prompting an ~10% intraday share plunge and mixed analyst reactions.
• The stock trades near $61.36 with a market cap around $88.2B; consensus is a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $65.66, though some firms have targets near $75 and others have trimmed estimates.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by analysts at UBS Group from $66.00 to $74.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the natural resource company's stock. UBS Group's price objective suggests a potential upside of 20.60% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on FCX. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $75.00 price target on Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Thursday. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $54.00 to $53.50 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Wall Street Zen cut Freeport-McMoRan from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Two 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $65.66.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE FCX traded down $0.12 during trading on Thursday, reaching $61.36. The company had a trading volume of 3,672,660 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,804,770. Freeport-McMoRan has a 12-month low of $34.45 and a 12-month high of $70.96. The stock has a market cap of $88.19 billion, a PE ratio of 40.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.48. The business's 50-day moving average is $62.50 and its 200 day moving average is $53.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.24 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Freeport-McMoRan

In related news, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.03, for a total transaction of $682,330.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 40,773 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,529,149.19. This trade represents a 21.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.52, for a total value of $4,839,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 219,181 shares in the company, valued at $14,141,558.12. This trade represents a 25.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 565,145 shares of company stock valued at $35,839,918 over the last three months. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FCX. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 1,962.9% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 722 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 687 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. boosted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% in the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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

Freeport-McMoRan Company Profile

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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