Spectrum Asset Management Inc. NB CA Makes New $3.19 Million Investment in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Spectrum Asset Management Inc. NB CA bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 54,312 shares of the natural resource company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,192,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Steph & Co. increased its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% during the 1st quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:FCX opened at $62.31 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $64.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.39. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $35.15 and a fifty-two week high of $72.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.35.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.10. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The firm had revenue of $6.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.24 EPS. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be issued a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is currently 15.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.50 to $58.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $66.00 target price (down from $70.00) on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued 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 an average price target of $68.27.

Freeport-McMoRan Profile

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.