Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Trading Up 1.3% After Analyst Upgrade

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) shares traded up 1.3% on Friday after BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on the stock from $56.00 to $75.00. BNP Paribas Exane currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Freeport-McMoRan traded as high as $63.35 and last traded at $62.8220. 14,359,075 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 39% from the average session volume of 23,453,617 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.04.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on FCX. Wall Street Zen raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. HSBC lifted their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Monday, January 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.26.

Insider Transactions at Freeport-McMoRan

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, Chairman Richard C. Adkerson sold 152,960 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.65, for a total value of $9,888,864.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 3,356,159 shares in the company, valued at $216,975,679.35. The trade was a 4.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 28,423 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.99, for a total value of $1,364,019.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 105,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,053,059.06. The trade was a 21.26% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 513,986 shares of company stock valued at $32,124,432. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

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

• Positive Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane raised its price target on FCX to $75 (from $56) and kept an Outperform rating — a sizable target upgrade that implies material upside vs. current levels and likely helped lift sentiment. MarketScreener
• Positive Sentiment: Argus upgraded FCX from Hold to Buy, adding a second broker buy signal in the same session and reinforcing demand from institutional/quant models that track analyst actions. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks/other research note flow highlights upward earnings?estimate revisions and momentum narratives for FCX, supporting higher multiples and giving analysts cover to lift targets. Zacks Momentum Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader coverage pieces and “momentum” stories (Yahoo, MSN, Zacks) are increasing investor attention — this can amplify moves but is informational rather than a direct fundamental catalyst. Yahoo Finance: Is It Too Late?
• Negative Sentiment: Chairman Richard C. Adkerson sold large blocks of stock (248,031 on Feb. 10 and 152,960 on Feb. 11); such high?profile disposals can weigh on sentiment even if not linked to company performance. SEC filing: Adkerson SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Douglas Currault II sold 75,000 shares (~$4.84M) — a meaningful insider sale disclosed in SEC filings that could add short?term supply to the market. SEC filing: Currault SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks flagged Grasberg operational setbacks that reduced Q4 volumes (lower volumes can pressure near?term revenue despite stronger realized metal prices). Zacks: Grasberg Setbacks

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FCX. Leo Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Leo Wealth LLC now owns 6,838 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 924 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Castle Rock Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,687 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 1,840 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 3,119 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average is $55.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.68. The company has a market capitalization of $90.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.60, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

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

About Freeport-McMoRan

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.