Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX Position Raised by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 5.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,678,183 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after purchasing an additional 84,582 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $65,818,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,962.9% during the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 722 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 687 shares in the last quarter. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Proffitt & Goodson Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 39.8% in the 3rd quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. now owns 977 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

NYSE FCX opened at $64.68 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.86. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.66 and a 52-week high of $69.44.

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

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 15th were given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.87%.

Insider Transactions at Freeport-McMoRan

In related news, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 9,572 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.66, for a total value of $456,201.52. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 38,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,847,349.26. This represents a 19.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Stephen T. Higgins sold 28,423 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.99, for a total transaction of $1,364,019.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 105,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,053,059.06. This trade represents a 21.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Clarkson Capital raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $46.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $70.00 price target on Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $58.40.

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.