Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX Stock: Pinnacle Associates Ltd. Cuts Holdings

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lessened its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 4.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 263,929 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 11,190 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $18,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FCX. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 2,011 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% in the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,539 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Breakwater Capital Group grew its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 15,930 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Essex Bank grew its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Essex Bank now owns 14,104 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $829,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on FCX. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $73.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $70.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $76.27.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 1.2%

NYSE FCX opened at $68.93 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. 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 $66.83. The company has a market cap of $98.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.95, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.39.

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

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.0750 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 80,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.56, for a total value of $6,284,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 211,016 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,577,416.96. The trade was a 27.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 value of $300,459.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 122,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,706,955.22. This trade represents a 3.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 110,398 shares of company stock valued at $8,387,271. Company insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

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

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $83 to $84 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying substantial potential upside from the referenced price. Freeport-McMoRan price target raised by Barclays
• Positive Sentiment: Upcoming earnings expectations are supportive. Zacks says FCX has two factors associated with a potential earnings beat, while analysts expect earnings to grow in the upcoming report. A strong result could provide a near-term catalyst, although the report has not yet been released. Freeport-McMoRan earnings expected to grow
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage recommendations are favorable, but their reliability is questioned. FCX’s average brokerage recommendation suggests the stock may merit inclusion in a portfolio. However, the article cautions that Wall Street analysts can be overly optimistic, making the rating a less dependable standalone buy signal. Freeport-McMoRan brokerage recommendations
• Negative Sentiment: Sector-relative performance may be weighing on sentiment. A comparison of FCX with Steel Dynamics and the broader basic-materials sector examines whether the company has lagged this year, potentially signaling weaker relative momentum and helping explain the stock’s decline. Freeport-McMoRan basic materials sector comparison

Freeport-McMoRan 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.