Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Research Coverage Started at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank initiated coverage on shares of Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) in a research report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a buy rating on the natural resource company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on FCX. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.50 to $58.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.27.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

NYSE:FCX opened at $76.54 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Freeport-McMoRan has a 52 week low of $35.15 and a 52 week high of $80.24. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $65.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $64.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $109.91 billion, a PE ratio of 37.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.37.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.12. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 10.63% and a net margin of 11.39%.The company had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.54 earnings per share. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan will post 2.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were issued a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Freeport-McMoRan

In other news, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 80,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.56, for a total transaction of $6,284,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 211,016 shares in the company, valued at $16,577,416.96. The trade was a 27.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 4,773 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $334,110.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 36,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,520,000. This trade represents a 11.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 110,398 shares of company stock worth $8,387,271 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 6,434.3% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 142,181,964 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $8,941,824,000 after buying an additional 140,006,047 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $739,890,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 98.8% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,973,108 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,014,434,000 after buying an additional 9,924,573 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 37,353,852 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,897,202,000 after acquiring an additional 8,891,743 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 102.5% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 14,211,579 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $721,806,000 after acquiring an additional 7,192,955 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Key Freeport-McMoRan News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Recent performance data shows strong momentum, with FCX gaining significantly over the past month, quarter, and year. Zacks also identifies the stock as a strong momentum name, which may continue attracting trend-focused investors. Freeport McMoRan On Smelter Optimism And Whether The Stock Is Already Priced In Here’s Why Freeport-McMoRan Is a Strong Momentum Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Optimism surrounding Freeport-McMoRan’s smelter operations and favorable copper prices supports the company’s growth outlook. A new Erste Group Bank coverage initiation with a “buy” rating also adds positive analyst sentiment. Erste Group Bank coverage
• Positive Sentiment: FCX recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $0.74 in earnings per share versus a $0.62 consensus estimate and revenue of $7.03 billion versus $6.62 billion expected. Analysts broadly maintain a “Moderate Buy” view, although the average published price target is below the current trading range.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts comparing FCX with BHP Group point to strong copper prices, healthy finances, and ongoing growth projects at both miners. The comparison supports the sector outlook but does not provide a clear company-specific catalyst. FCX versus BHP
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns are weighing on the stock after its copper-fueled rally. While a discounted-cash-flow analysis suggests potential upside, market-multiple measures indicate FCX may be expensive following its strong run. Freeport-McMoRan Stock May Be Pricey After Record Copper Rally
• Negative Sentiment: Executive Vice President Douglas Currault II sold 80,000 shares worth approximately $6.3 million, reducing his holdings by 27.5%. Although the sale may be personal or scheduled, it can reinforce profit-taking concerns when the stock is near record levels. Freeport-McMoRan Insider Selling

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.