Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Given New $76.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) had its price target lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $52.00 to $76.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the natural resource company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank raised their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Freeport-McMoRan from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $53.50 to $54.00 in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.35.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

FCX stock opened at $65.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $55.25 and a 200-day moving average of $46.58. The company has a market cap of $93.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.32, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Freeport-McMoRan has a 12-month low of $27.66 and a 12-month high of $69.44.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $5.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.42 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 8.50%.The company’s revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.31 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 15th were paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is presently 19.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, Chairman Richard C. Adkerson sold 248,031 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.80, for a total transaction of $15,576,346.80. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 3,509,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $220,372,673.20. This represents a 6.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 28,423 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.99, for a total value of $1,364,019.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 105,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,053,059.06. This represents a 21.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 513,986 shares of company stock worth $32,124,432. 0.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Freeport-McMoRan

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCX. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 38,195 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,940,000 after purchasing an additional 4,431 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC increased its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 1,559,067 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $79,185,000 after purchasing an additional 7,809 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC raised its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 1,183,563 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $60,113,000 after purchasing an additional 62,698 shares during the period. Investment Research Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter worth about $202,000. Finally, Caerus Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter worth about $965,000. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

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

• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus raised its price target on FCX from $52 to $76 and maintained a “buy” rating, giving the stock a notable broker-backed upside case that can support further inflows. BayStreet.CA
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlights that earnings estimate revisions for Freeport have trended higher (“surging estimates”), which supports valuation expansion and helps explain near-term upward price momentum. Surging Earnings Estimates Signal Upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader coverage from Zacks (sector comparisons, value/momentum write-ups) is increasing investor attention on FCX; useful for volume and sentiment but not a direct fundamental catalyst. FCX Attracting Investor Attention
• Negative Sentiment: Chairman Richard C. Adkerson sold 152,960 shares on Feb. 11 at about $64.65 (~$9.9M); large insider dispositions can weigh on sentiment even if explained by diversification or planned liquidity. Adkerson Feb 11 SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Adkerson also sold 248,031 shares on Feb. 10 at roughly $62.80 (~$15.6M) in a separate transaction; multiple large sales over consecutive days amplify potential negative headlines. Adkerson Feb 10 SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Douglas Currault II sold 75,000 shares on Feb. 11 at ~ $64.52 (~$4.84M). While still retaining a large stake, the sale is another near-term negative for insider-sentiment metrics. Currault Feb 11 SEC Filing

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.