Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) Receives $70.27 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-four analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $70.2682.

Several brokerages have issued reports on FCX. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $78.00 price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $72.00 to $75.00 in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st.

Key Stories Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

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

• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group Bank initiates coverage with a Buy rating. The new bullish recommendation adds positive analyst attention and suggests the bank expects additional upside for Freeport-McMoRan. The shares were recently quoted at $78.67. Freeport-McMoRan stock information
• Positive Sentiment: Favorable copper prices and growth investments remain key supports. A comparison with BHP Group highlights that both mining companies are benefiting from strong copper pricing and using solid balance sheets to advance expansion projects. This supports Freeport-McMoRan’s longer-term production and earnings outlook. FCX vs. BHP copper mining comparison
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent operating results provide a positive fundamental backdrop, but growth is uneven. Freeport-McMoRan’s latest reported quarter exceeded earnings and revenue expectations, although revenue declined year over year. Institutional investors own approximately 80.8% of the shares, indicating substantial professional-investor involvement.
• Negative Sentiment: An executive sold $6.28 million of stock. EVP Douglas Currault II sold 80,000 shares at an average price of $78.56, reducing his direct holdings by 27.5%. While the sale does not necessarily indicate a change in business outlook, it can weigh on sentiment because it represents a sizable insider transaction. Freeport-McMoRan insider sale
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and expectations may constrain upside. FCX trades at roughly 39 times earnings, while the previously reported analyst consensus price target of $70.27 is below the recent market price. That gap could encourage profit-taking despite the new Buy rating and favorable copper outlook.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 14,277 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $992,251.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 54,618 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,795,951. This represents a 20.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 4,773 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $334,110.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 36,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,520,000. The trade was a 11.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 106,600 shares of company stock valued at $8,086,812. 0.73% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of FCX. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. NBH Bank purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% during the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock opened at $78.67 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $112.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.37. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $65.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.93. Freeport-McMoRan has a 1-year low of $35.15 and a 1-year high of $80.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

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

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.78%.

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.