Bank of Nova Scotia Has $92.86 Million Stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Bank of Nova Scotia reduced its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 16.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,579,852 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 314,026 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned approximately 0.11% of Freeport-McMoRan worth $92,862,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% in the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the first quarter worth $29,000. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Freeport-McMoRan

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

• Positive Sentiment: FCX reported second-quarter earnings of $0.74 per share, ahead of the $0.62 consensus, while revenue of $7.03 billion also topped estimates, helped by higher realized metal prices. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Freeport-McMoRan said net income rose sharply year over year, and commentary around strong income growth and improved operations points to healthy underlying profitability. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Higher copper prices provided a tailwind to results, and one analyst also raised FCX’s price target to $80, suggesting some optimism remains around the stock’s longer-term setup. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Management posted its quarterly and six-month results and highlighted strategic expansions, but also noted challenges from capital spending and regulatory approvals. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Shares are under pressure because lower operating rates at the Grasberg mine and a softer copper sales outlook for the next quarter have raised concerns about near-term production and revenue. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Recent weakness in copper prices has also weighed on sentiment across the sector, adding to investor caution around FCX’s near-term earnings momentum. Article Title

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 2.6%

NYSE FCX opened at $63.31 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.37. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.15 and a 52 week high of $72.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 2.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $63.59 and a 200-day moving average of $62.33.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.62 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 10.34%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $77.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upped their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $71.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.95.

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.