Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Analyst Says

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) had its price objective raised by equities researchers at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $58.00 to $72.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the natural resource company’s stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 5.42% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on FCX. CICC Research increased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $50.40 to $64.40 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $64.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Bank of America increased their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.26.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

FCX opened at $68.30 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $62.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.63. Freeport-McMoRan has a 12-month low of $32.12 and a 12-month high of $69.75. The company has a current ratio of 2.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $98.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.23, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.48.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.19. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 8.50%.The firm had revenue of $5.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.31 EPS. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 11,000 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 40,773 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,529,149.19. This trade represents a 21.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 29,654 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total value of $1,868,202.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 76,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,816,035. The trade was a 27.95% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 565,145 shares of company stock worth $35,839,918. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,807 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $564,000 after acquiring an additional 2,882 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 9,616 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $366,000 after acquiring an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 2nd quarter worth about $560,000. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 27.0% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 12,443 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $539,000 after acquiring an additional 2,648 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 42.7% during the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 50,114 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $2,172,000 after acquiring an additional 14,992 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

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.