Matthews International Capital Management LLC Sells 50,128 Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Matthews International Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 50.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,563 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 50,128 shares during the quarter. Freeport-McMoRan accounts for 1.4% of Matthews International Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Matthews International Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $3,469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NBH Bank acquired a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the first quarter worth about $29,000. REAP Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Roxbury Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 196.5% during the second quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC now owns 593 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the first quarter worth approximately $39,000. 80.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, Director Lydia H. Kennard sold 3,798 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.11, for a total transaction of $300,459.78. Following the sale, the director directly owned 122,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,706,955.22. The trade was a 3.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.56, for a total transaction of $6,284,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 211,016 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,577,416.96. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.73% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $73.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Erste Group Bank started coverage on Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Thursday, August 27th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.30.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

Shares of FCX opened at $60.23 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.85 and a 1 year high of $80.24. The stock has a market cap of $86.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $69.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.29.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The natural resource company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $7.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.36 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 13.03% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.50 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 15th were paid a dividend of $0.0750 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.61%.

Freeport-McMoRan Profile

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. is a mining company focused primarily on the exploration, development and production of copper, gold and molybdenum. Its products serve industries including construction, manufacturing, electronics and energy. The company operates mines and related facilities in North America, South America and Indonesia. Its assets include the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia and copper operations in the United States, Peru and Chile. Freeport-McMoRan traces its roots to Freeport Sulphur Company, founded in 1912, and has since developed into a major international mining business.