Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Chairman Sells $15,576,346.80 in Stock

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) Chairman Richard Adkerson sold 248,031 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.80, for a total transaction of $15,576,346.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 3,509,119 shares in the company, valued at $220,372,673.20. This represents a 6.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

FCX opened at $62.82 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $55.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.21 billion, a PE ratio of 41.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.47. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 52 week low of $27.66 and a 52 week high of $69.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 2.29.

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

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on FCX shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. HSBC boosted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $63.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Argus upgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.26.

Key Freeport-McMoRan News

Here are the key news stories impacting Freeport-McMoRan this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane raised its price target on FCX to $75 (from $56) and kept an “outperform” rating — a sizeable lift to upside expectations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Argus upgraded FCX from “hold” to “buy,” reinforcing buy-side momentum and contributing to short‑term demand. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Other broker actions (Stifel raised its target to $76; UBS, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley have recently lifted targets) add to the analyst-driven narrative supporting higher valuations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks and other research outlets highlight rising earnings-estimate revisions and momentum characteristics for FCX, which can justify multiple expansion if commodity prices and volumes cooperate. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Increased media and analyst attention (multiple Zacks pieces, MSN/Yahoo coverage) is amplifying flows into FCX but is informational rather than a direct operational catalyst. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Grasberg production setbacks materially reduced Q4 copper/gold volumes, a real operational headwind that can limit near-term revenue despite stronger prices. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sales: Chairman Richard Adkerson disclosed multi-hundred-thousand‑share disposals (Feb. 10–11 filings) totaling tens of millions of dollars — these trades can sap sentiment even if explained by diversification or tax planning. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Douglas Currault II sold 75,000 shares (~$4.8M); insider selling at the executive level is a nearer-term negative for perception of internal conviction. Read More.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter worth $1,043,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,717 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $392,000 after acquiring an additional 2,458 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 59.2% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 15,244 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $774,000 after purchasing an additional 5,666 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,758.2% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,636,150 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $184,680,000 after buying an additional 3,440,472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Sense Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 106.6% during the 4th quarter. Financial Sense Advisors Inc. now owns 427,609 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $21,718,000 after purchasing an additional 220,634 shares during the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Freeport-McMoRan Company 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.