Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Sells 10,008 Shares of FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC trimmed its position in shares of FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC) by 44.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,429 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 10,008 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in FMC were worth $604,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Millburn Ridgefield Corp lifted its holdings in FMC by 186.2% in the third quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp now owns 498 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of FMC during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of FMC by 217.4% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 746 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of FMC in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of FMC by 65.3% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 959 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. 91.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Vertical Research upgraded shares of FMC to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on FMC in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $51.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price (down from $61.00) on shares of FMC in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on FMC from $70.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut FMC from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $49.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FMC has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.15.

Insider Activity at FMC

In related news, Director Carol Anthony Davidson acquired 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $37.33 per share, for a total transaction of $223,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $223,980. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Finian Reilly sold 2,958 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.25, for a total value of $163,429.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 25,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,407,107. The trade was a 10.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

FMC Trading Down 8.8 %

Shares of FMC opened at $38.85 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.24. FMC Co. has a 1 year low of $33.80 and a 1 year high of $68.72. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.30.

FMC (NYSE:FMC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The basic materials company reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. FMC had a net margin of 8.03% and a return on equity of 9.67%. On average, equities analysts expect that FMC Co. will post 3.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FMC Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.97%. FMC’s dividend payout ratio is currently 85.29%.

FMC Company Profile

FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company, provides crop protection, plant health, and professional pest and turf management products. It develops, markets, and sells crop protection chemicals that includes insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides; and biologicals, crop nutrition, and seed treatment products, which are used in agriculture to enhance crop yield and quality by controlling a range of insects, weeds, and diseases, as well as in non-agricultural markets for pest control.