FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $57.75.

FMC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of FMC from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $78.00 to $47.00 in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of FMC from $75.00 to $66.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of FMC from $62.00 to $50.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Mizuho reduced their target price on FMC from $70.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target (down previously from $61.00) on shares of FMC in a report on Wednesday.

FMC Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:FMC opened at $35.66 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. FMC has a 12-month low of $34.00 and a 12-month high of $68.72. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $52.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.53. The firm has a market cap of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 3.07, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.84.

FMC (NYSE:FMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The basic materials company reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. FMC had a return on equity of 7.68% and a net margin of 34.93%. Equities research analysts predict that FMC will post 3.33 earnings per share for the current year.

FMC Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.51%. FMC’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Jacqueline Scanlan sold 4,529 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.67, for a total value of $270,245.43. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 28,649 shares in the company, valued at $1,709,485.83. This represents a 13.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Finian Reilly sold 2,958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.25, for a total transaction of $163,429.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,407,107. This represents a 10.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,491 shares of company stock valued at $433,898 in the last ninety days. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FMC

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Millburn Ridgefield Corp lifted its holdings in FMC by 186.2% in the third quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp now owns 498 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of FMC by 90.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 517 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its stake in shares of FMC by 250.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 554 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 396 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of FMC during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in FMC during the third quarter worth approximately $51,000. 91.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.