Van ECK Associates Corp Lowers Stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Van ECK Associates Corp lessened its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 10.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,709,612 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 195,662 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $107,517,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in FCX. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 position in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% during the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 11.6% in the second 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 last quarter. Essex Bank raised its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 1.2% in the first quarter. Essex Bank now owns 14,104 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $829,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 2.6% in the second quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 6,788 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Freeport-McMoRan

In other news, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 4,773 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total value of $334,110.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 36,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,520,000. This represents a 11.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 14,277 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $992,251.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 54,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,795,951. The trade was a 20.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 110,398 shares of company stock worth $8,387,271. 0.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

Shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock opened at $76.54 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.70, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $65.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.02. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.15 and a 52 week high of $80.24.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 11.39% and a return on equity of 10.63%. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue was down 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.79 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is 14.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $66.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.27.

More Freeport-McMoRan News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Recent performance data shows strong momentum, with FCX gaining significantly over the past month, quarter, and year. Zacks also identifies the stock as a strong momentum name, which may continue attracting trend-focused investors. Freeport McMoRan On Smelter Optimism And Whether The Stock Is Already Priced In Here’s Why Freeport-McMoRan Is a Strong Momentum Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Optimism surrounding Freeport-McMoRan’s smelter operations and favorable copper prices supports the company’s growth outlook. A new Erste Group Bank coverage initiation with a “buy” rating also adds positive analyst sentiment. Erste Group Bank coverage
• Positive Sentiment: FCX recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $0.74 in earnings per share versus a $0.62 consensus estimate and revenue of $7.03 billion versus $6.62 billion expected. Analysts broadly maintain a “Moderate Buy” view, although the average published price target is below the current trading range.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts comparing FCX with BHP Group point to strong copper prices, healthy finances, and ongoing growth projects at both miners. The comparison supports the sector outlook but does not provide a clear company-specific catalyst. FCX versus BHP
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns are weighing on the stock after its copper-fueled rally. While a discounted-cash-flow analysis suggests potential upside, market-multiple measures indicate FCX may be expensive following its strong run. Freeport-McMoRan Stock May Be Pricey After Record Copper Rally
• Negative Sentiment: Executive Vice President Douglas Currault II sold 80,000 shares worth approximately $6.3 million, reducing his holdings by 27.5%. Although the sale may be personal or scheduled, it can reinforce profit-taking concerns when the stock is near record levels. Freeport-McMoRan Insider Selling

Freeport-McMoRan Company 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.