Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Reaches New 52-Week Low – What’s Next?

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $35.17 and last traded at $35.24, with a volume of 94717 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on FCX shares. Argus lowered Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Freeport-McMoRan from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $51.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Freeport-McMoRan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.46.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Up 0.4 %

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.05). Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 7.42% and a return on equity of 7.50%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FCX. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 487.8% in the 4th quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 150.4% in the 3rd quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 576 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the period. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.