Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Trading Down 12.6% – Here’s What Happened

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)’s stock price traded down 12.6% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $61.00 and last traded at $61.4760. 38,702,107 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 93% from the average session volume of 20,049,230 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.36.

More Freeport-McMoRan News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations — FCX posted $0.57 EPS (vs. $0.47 consensus) and revenue above estimates, with profits aided by higher copper, gold and molybdenum prices. The earnings beat and commodity tailwinds are supportive for cash flow and valuation. FCX’s Q1 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates on Higher Copper Prices
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts remain constructive — Deutsche Bank recently raised its price target to $72 (from $58) and other brokers have upbeat commentary pointing to recovery potential as Grasberg ramps. That supports the view of upside once production normalizes. Is Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) the Best Beginner Stock to Buy Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are reassessing valuation after a strong run — recent analyses highlight large YTD and 1?year gains, prompting fresh valuation work as the stock digests both commodity strength and operational risk. Assessing Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) Valuation After Powerful Recent Share Price Momentum
• Negative Sentiment: Management cut 2026–27 copper sales outlook by ~300 million pounds due to slower Grasberg ramp — the guidance reduction is the primary driver of the stock selloff, reflecting lower future volumes even if prices remain strong. FCX Stock Dives On Copper Output Cut. These Stocks Are Rallying.
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: shares plunged after the production cut announcement and weaker near?term output outlook tied to Grasberg recovery delays — this operational uncertainty is weighing more heavily than the quarterly beat. Freeport McMoRan falls as Grasberg delay cuts 2026 output outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Broad coverage emphasizes the production miss and lowered forecasts — outlets note lower copper/gold output following last year’s incident, reinforcing near?term downside risk to volumes and guidance. Freeport-McMoRan beats first-quarter profit on higher copper prices (Reuters)

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FCX has been the topic of several research reports. CICC Research raised their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $50.40 to $64.40 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $64.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Freedom Capital upgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.21.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 2.29. The company has a market capitalization of $88.35 billion, a PE ratio of 40.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.48. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.58.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.10. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The company had revenue of $6.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.24 EPS. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.87%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of Freeport-McMoRan 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 transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Maree E. Robertson sold 48,500 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.55, for a total transaction of $2,985,175.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 79,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,917,475.70. This trade represents a 37.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 565,145 shares of company stock worth $35,839,918 over the last quarter. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 49.0% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 221,838 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $11,267,000 after purchasing an additional 73,002 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 1,551,258 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $60,840,000 after purchasing an additional 115,285 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments lifted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 278.4% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 46,157 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,810,000 after acquiring an additional 33,959 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 190.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 36,494,793 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,431,326,000 after acquiring an additional 23,950,557 shares during the period. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,066,000. 80.77% of the stock is 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.