Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX Stock Sold by Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG decreased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 17.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 134,850 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 27,929 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $9,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 66,485,424 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $4,181,268,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300,416 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 20.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 42,345,502 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $2,489,069,000 after buying an additional 7,044,775 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 13.8% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,918,066 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $938,197,000 after buying an additional 1,810,698 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 11,819,898 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $743,353,000 after buying an additional 1,125,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $739,890,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on FCX. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Freedom Broker downgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $76.27.

Key Headlines Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

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

• Positive Sentiment: Earnings expectations are supportive. Analysts expect Freeport-McMoRan’s upcoming results to show earnings growth, and Zacks says the company has factors that could increase the likelihood of an earnings beat. Stronger-than-expected results or guidance could provide a near-term catalyst. Freeport-McMoRan Earnings Expected to Grow
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target. Barclays increased its target for FCX to $84 from $83 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying meaningful upside from recent trading levels. The upgrade in valuation support may help sentiment, particularly if earnings meet expectations. Barclays Raises Freeport-McMoRan Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Broker ratings are favorable but not necessarily a strong signal. Freeport-McMoRan’s average brokerage recommendation suggests the shares are suitable for portfolios, but the analysis cautions that sell-side ratings can be overly optimistic and may not reliably indicate future performance. Freeport-McMoRan Broker Recommendations
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector-relative performance is under review. A comparison with Steel Dynamics and the broader basic-materials group may indicate whether FCX is outperforming or lagging its sector this year, but the article does not identify a new company-specific development. Basic Materials Stocks and Freeport-McMoRan Performance
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings are expected Tuesday. The scheduled report is likely to be the next major event for FCX, with investors focused on copper production, prices, margins and forward guidance. Freeport-McMoRan Expected Earnings Announcement

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 1.4%

FCX stock traded down $0.97 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $68.78. 5,003,658 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,049,454. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.77 billion, a PE ratio of 33.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.39. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.54 and a 1 year high of $80.24. The company has a 50-day moving average of $72.10 and a 200-day moving average of $66.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 2.07.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.62 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 10.63% and a net margin of 11.39%. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.54 EPS. Analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.90 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be issued a $0.0750 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.78%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lydia H. Kennard sold 3,798 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.11, for a total transaction of $300,459.78. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 122,702 shares in the company, valued at $9,706,955.22. This represents a 3.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 14,277 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total transaction of $992,251.50. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 54,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,795,951. The trade was a 20.72% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 110,398 shares of company stock worth $8,387,271 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Company Profile

Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE: FCX) is a global mining company primarily engaged in the exploration, development, and production of copper. Copper is used extensively in electrical wiring, construction, transportation, renewable energy systems, and other industrial applications. The company also produces gold and molybdenum, a metal used in steelmaking and other industrial processes, as well as certain other byproducts.

Freeport-McMoRan operates a portfolio of mining and processing assets in North America, South America, and Indonesia.