Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-three brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $60.7333.

FCX has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Argus raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 29,654 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $1,868,202.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 76,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,816,035. This trade represents a 27.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.03, for a total value of $682,330.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 40,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,529,149.19. The trade was a 21.25% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 603,140 shares of company stock worth $37,660,139. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FCX. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,807 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $564,000 after acquiring an additional 2,882 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 9,616 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $366,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the second quarter valued at approximately $560,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 4,825.6% during the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 6,354 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 6,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 5.3% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,547,779 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $67,096,000 after purchasing an additional 78,018 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FCX opened at $68.38 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $98.28 billion, a PE ratio of 45.29, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.47. The company’s fifty day moving average is $59.17 and its 200 day moving average is $48.33. Freeport-McMoRan has a 52 week low of $27.66 and a 52 week high of $69.75. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $5.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.42 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 8.50%. The company’s revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.31 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, January 15th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is currently 19.87%.

Key Headlines Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

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

• Positive Sentiment: Life‑of‑resource operating rights extension at Grasberg and related commitments (retaining Freeport’s majority stake through the extended term) materially reduce regulatory timing risk for a flagship asset and underpin the recent multi‑day rally. Freeport‑McMoRan Grasberg Deal Reshapes Long Term Risk And Reward
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets (several firms raising ratings/targets) are supporting buy‑side interest and helped fuel the recent market cap gain. MarketBeat: Analyst coverage roundup
• Positive Sentiment: Stronger base‑metals momentum—especially copper as Chinese trading activity returned—improves Freeport’s near‑term revenue outlook and makes miners’ cash flows more attractive. Copper leads base metals higher as Chinese traders return
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage and investor attention pieces (Zacks, Yahoo) highlight FCX as a high‑interest name this week, which can increase volatility as different investor cohorts rotate in and out. Zacks: FCX attracting investor attention Yahoo Finance: FCX attracting investor attention
• Neutral Sentiment: Management presentation at the BMO metals conference is available — useful for detail on guidance and project plans but not an immediate catalyst unless new guidance is released. BMO conference transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Unrelated junior miner exploration news (Max Resource) was circulated in market feeds but has no direct impact on Freeport’s fundamentals. Max Resource Mora sampling
• Negative Sentiment: Company CAO Stephen Higgins sold ~29,654 shares (~$63 avg) late February, trimming his holding by roughly 28% — insider sales can weigh on sentiment when they follow steep run‑ups. InsiderTrades: Insider selling alert
• Negative Sentiment: After a multi‑day advance, the stock snapped a six‑session winning streak as profit‑taking and short‑term repositioning occurred; that pullback is the proximate cause of today’s weaker price action. Seeking Alpha: Shares snap six‑session winning streak

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.