FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,310,000 shares, a growth of 9.4% from the November 30th total of 5,770,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,260,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.0 days. Currently, 5.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

FMC Stock Performance

FMC stock traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $48.61. The company had a trading volume of 1,387,884 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,655,065. FMC has a 12 month low of $47.71 and a 12 month high of $68.72. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $56.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.50. The firm has a market cap of $6.07 billion, a PE ratio of 4.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.48.

FMC (NYSE:FMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. FMC had a return on equity of 7.68% and a net margin of 34.93%. FMC’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that FMC will post 3.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FMC Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.77%. FMC’s payout ratio is 19.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other FMC news, VP Jacqueline Scanlan sold 4,529 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.67, for a total transaction of $270,245.43. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 28,649 shares in the company, valued at $1,709,485.83. This trade represents a 13.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FMC

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barnett & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in FMC during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,265,000. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. increased its position in shares of FMC by 18.7% during the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 60,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,970,000 after buying an additional 9,500 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of FMC by 27.8% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 43,483 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,867,000 after buying an additional 9,449 shares in the last quarter. First National Bank of Omaha boosted its position in shares of FMC by 85.7% in the third quarter. First National Bank of Omaha now owns 33,935 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,238,000 after acquiring an additional 15,662 shares during the period. Finally, Algert Global LLC grew its stake in FMC by 118.4% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 58,752 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,874,000 after acquiring an additional 31,850 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on FMC shares. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of FMC from $70.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of FMC from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group cut their price objective on FMC from $75.00 to $66.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on FMC from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, FMC has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.69.

FMC Company Profile

FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company, provides crop protection, plant health, and professional pest and turf management products. It develops, markets, and sells crop protection chemicals that includes insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides; and biologicals, crop nutrition, and seed treatment products, which are used in agriculture to enhance crop yield and quality by controlling a range of insects, weeds, and diseases, as well as in non-agricultural markets for pest control.