StockNews.com Upgrades Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on FCX. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $47.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Argus cut shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.75.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FCX opened at $36.84 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $52.94 billion, a PE ratio of 28.56, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.87. The company’s fifty day moving average is $37.92 and its 200 day moving average is $42.18. Freeport-McMoRan has a 52 week low of $33.98 and a 52 week high of $55.24. 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 (NYSE:FCX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.05). Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.50% and a net margin of 7.42%. Research analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Freeport-McMoRan

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 487.8% in the fourth quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

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.