Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Shares Gap Down to $48.95

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $48.95, but opened at $47.45. Freeport-McMoRan shares last traded at $47.82, with a volume of 4,282,287 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $41.00 to $48.50 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $43.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Bank of America raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $59.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.15.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 1.9 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.85 billion, a PE ratio of 37.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 2.04.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.05. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 8.41% and a net margin of 8.09%. The business had revenue of $6.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.70 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.57 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 422.2% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 658 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. 80.77% of the stock is owned by 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.