Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Announces Earnings Results

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The natural resource company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.01), RTT News reports. The business had revenue of $5.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.36 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.50% and a net margin of 7.42%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 earnings per share.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Up 6.3 %

Shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock traded up $2.23 on Thursday, reaching $37.42. The stock had a trading volume of 9,289,417 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,866,514. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $36.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.18. 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 has a 1 year low of $27.66 and a 1 year high of $55.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.71.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Freeport-McMoRan's payout ratio is 23.26%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Freeport-McMoRan stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX - Free Report) by 24.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,807 shares of the natural resource company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,882 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC's holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $564,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on FCX shares. Raymond James raised their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Wolfe Research upgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $39.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Freeport-McMoRan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $40.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.33.

About Freeport-McMoRan

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.

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