Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Boosts Stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,764,414 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after acquiring an additional 200,516 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.12% of Freeport-McMoRan worth $88,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 1,170.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 521 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the second quarter worth $26,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the first quarter valued at $26,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of FCX traded down $0.88 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $47.04. The company had a trading volume of 4,576,486 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,062,802. The stock has a market cap of $67.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.90. The company has a current ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.86. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.83 and a fifty-two week high of $55.24.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $6.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.60% and a net margin of 7.83%. The firm’s revenue was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.39 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Scotiabank lowered their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $52.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.00.

Freeport-McMoRan 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.