FMC (NYSE:FMC) Stock Price Up 4.2% – Still a Buy?

Shares of FMC Corporation (NYSE:FMC) shot up 4.2% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $11.12 and last traded at $11.11. Approximately 775,057 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 3,817,273 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.66.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on FMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of FMC from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of FMC from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. BMO Capital Markets set a $14.00 target price on FMC in a research note on Friday, July 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised FMC from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of FMC from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, FMC presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.25.

FMC Stock Up 4.6%

The firm has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -0.51 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.99. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $10.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.22.

FMC (NYSE:FMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.04. FMC had a positive return on equity of 11.35% and a negative net margin of 84.83%.The business had revenue of $841.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $895.14 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.69 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that FMC Corporation will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

FMC Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. FMC’s dividend payout ratio is -1.45%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FMC

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in FMC by 14.9% during the 1st quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 12,427 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 1,614 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of FMC by 3,642.9% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,785 shares during the last quarter. Essential Partners LLC purchased a new stake in FMC during the first quarter valued at $43,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of FMC by 297.2% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,264 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 4,687 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nykredit A S purchased a new position in FMC during the second quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Institutional investors own 91.86% of the company’s stock.

FMC Company Profile

FMC Corporation is a global agricultural sciences company specializing in the development, manufacture and marketing of crop protection products. Its portfolio includes herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and plant nutrition solutions designed to enhance crop yield, quality and sustainability. In addition to core crop protection, FMC delivers solutions for turf management and pest control in urban and industrial environments.

Founded in 1883 as the Bean Spray Pump Company and later known as Food Machinery Corporation, the business adopted the FMC name in 1948 and has since evolved through strategic acquisitions and divestitures.