Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $69.60 and last traded at $68.6690, with a volume of 2333057 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $67.88.

Freeport-McMoRan News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Freeport secured a long‑term extension of operating rights at the Grasberg copper‑gold complex through 2041 with revised ownership/governance and bigger community and exploration commitments — this materially reduces near‑term legal/regulatory risk for a core asset and supports long‑term production visibility. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Base metals, led by copper, rallied as Chinese traders returned to the market — higher copper prices are an immediate, direct tailwind to FCX’s revenue and free cash flow outlook. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment has turned more favorable: at least one shop upgraded FCX to “strong‑buy” (reported via Zacks) and multiple firms have recently raised price targets — these upgrades can amplify buying momentum after the Grasberg news. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparative coverage places FCX vs. Southern Copper (SCCO) as peers exposed to copper volatility; pieces note both firms are funding big projects from strong cash flow — useful for positioning but not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Freeport’s presentation at the BMO Global Metals & Mining conference is available (transcript); investors should watch management commentary for any updates to guidance or capex/timing on key projects. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 29,654 shares at roughly $63 each (SEC filing), trimming his stake by ~28% — while such sales can be routine, they may be viewed negatively by momentum or sentiment‑driven investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage highlighting insider exits across names (including FCX) frames these sales as part of post‑rally profit‑taking, a potential psychological headwind after recent strong gains. Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on FCX. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Freedom Capital raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Argus raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.73.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 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 earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.19. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The company had revenue of $5.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.31 EPS. Freeport-McMoRan’s quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 15th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is presently 19.87%.

Insider Transactions at Freeport-McMoRan

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, Chairman Richard C. Adkerson sold 248,031 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.80, for a total value of $15,576,346.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 3,509,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $220,372,673.20. This trade represents a 6.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Maree E. Robertson sold 48,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.55, for a total transaction of $2,985,175.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 79,894 shares in the company, valued at $4,917,475.70. The trade was a 37.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 603,140 shares of company stock valued at $37,660,139. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 190.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 36,494,793 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,431,326,000 after purchasing an additional 23,950,557 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 98.8% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 19,973,108 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,014,434,000 after buying an additional 9,924,573 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 31.2% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 37,353,852 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $1,897,202,000 after acquiring an additional 8,891,743 shares during the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 89.4% during the 2nd quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 17,569,169 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $761,623,000 after acquiring an additional 8,292,873 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 102.5% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 14,211,579 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $721,806,000 after acquiring an additional 7,192,955 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

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.