Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Stock Rating Lowered by Sanford C. Bernstein

Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has $46.00 price objective on the natural resource company’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $51.00.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on FCX. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com downgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.96.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

FCX opened at $39.77 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.03, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.86. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $42.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.74. Freeport-McMoRan has a 12-month low of $36.26 and a 12-month high of $55.24.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $6.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 7.81%. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.39 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This is an increase from Freeport-McMoRan’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.90%.

Institutional Trading of Freeport-McMoRan

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,170.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 521 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the second quarter worth $25,000. Matrix Trust Co bought a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the third quarter worth $25,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Company Profile

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.