Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) Shares Purchased by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. increased its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) by 12.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 188,781 shares of the natural resource company's stock after buying an additional 20,729 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $7,240,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 487.8% during the fourth quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the natural resource company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 80.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

FCX traded down $0.31 on Friday, reaching $37.32. The company had a trading volume of 10,953,380 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,890,683. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.66 and a 1 year high of $55.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.63 billion, a PE ratio of 28.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.71. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $36.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.88.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The natural resource company reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $5.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.36 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 7.42% and a return on equity of 7.50%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Freeport-McMoRan's payout ratio is 24.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Dbs Bank raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut Freeport-McMoRan from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $51.00 to $46.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $50.00 target price (up from $48.00) on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $47.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $48.00.

Freeport-McMoRan Company Profile

Freeport-McMoRan Inc engages in the mining of mineral properties in North America, South America, and Indonesia. It primarily explores for copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and other metals. The company's assets include the Grasberg minerals district in Indonesia; Morenci, Bagdad, Safford, Sierrita, and Miami in Arizona; Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico; and Henderson and Climax in Colorado, North America, as well as Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile.