Beech Hill Advisors Inc. Boosts Position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 51,375 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,575 shares during the period. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $1,956,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FCX. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 9.7% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 164,640 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $8,219,000 after purchasing an additional 14,501 shares in the last quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC increased its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 137.5% during the 3rd quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 147,735 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $7,375,000 after purchasing an additional 85,542 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments lifted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,559.3% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 76,493 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $3,819,000 after purchasing an additional 71,883 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $754,000. Finally, AIA Group Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 16.2% during the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 92,224 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $4,604,000 after purchasing an additional 12,887 shares in the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:FCX traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $40.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,330,717 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,271,415. The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $41.54 and a 200 day moving average of $44.43. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a twelve month low of $36.26 and a twelve month high of $55.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.64 billion, a PE ratio of 29.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.87.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $6.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.45 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 7.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.39 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, January 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is 21.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on FCX shares. Scotiabank lowered their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Raymond James raised their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.42.

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.