Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)’s share price hit a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $33.50 and last traded at $33.80, with a volume of 21042152 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $38.20.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Argus cut Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Freeport-McMoRan from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $51.00 to $46.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Dbs Bank raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $47.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.04.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 12.4 %

The stock has a market cap of $48.08 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.87. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $38.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 2.42.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.05). Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.50% and a net margin of 7.42%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 234.4% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,484 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $132,000 after purchasing an additional 2,442 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 5.0% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 30,192 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $1,143,000 after buying an additional 1,442 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 3.3% in the first quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 14,630 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $554,000 after buying an additional 463 shares in the last quarter. 111 Capital purchased a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter valued at $503,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 180,623 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $6,878,000 after acquiring an additional 22,206 shares in the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Freeport-McMoRan

Freeport-McMoRan Inc engages in the mining of mineral properties in North America, South America, and Indonesia. It primarily explores for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and other metals. The company's assets include the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita, and Miami in Arizona; Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico; and Henderson and Climax in Colorado, North America, as well as Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile.