Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Lowers Position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. $FCX

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,473,371 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 147,926 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $176,413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FCX. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 190.9% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 36,494,793 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $1,431,326,000 after purchasing an additional 23,950,557 shares during the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 289.0% during the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 3,844,504 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $150,781,000 after purchasing an additional 2,856,302 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 205.0% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,186,621 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $181,490,000 after purchasing an additional 2,813,845 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 43.7% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 7,018,624 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $282,991,000 after purchasing an additional 2,132,708 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kirkoswald Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the third quarter valued at approximately $82,754,200,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

Shares of FCX opened at $67.90 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $97.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.47 and a 200 day moving average of $51.95. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a twelve month low of $31.85 and a twelve month high of $69.75.

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

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.87%.

Insider Activity at Freeport-McMoRan

In other Freeport-McMoRan news, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.52, for a total value of $4,839,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 219,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,141,558.12. The trade was a 25.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Richard C. Adkerson sold 152,960 shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.65, for a total transaction of $9,888,864.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 3,356,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $216,975,679.35. This trade represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 565,145 shares of company stock valued at $35,839,918 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on FCX shares. HSBC lifted their target price 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. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.11.

Freeport-McMoRan News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target to $76 and kept an overweight rating, giving the shares fresh upside from a major bank’s view. JPMorgan Adjusts PT on Freeport-McMoRan
• Positive Sentiment: Billions under management: Millennium Management (Israel Englander) continues to hold FCX in its top-10 portfolio, signaling long-term institutional conviction. That endorsement supports investor confidence. Israel Englander Remains Bullish on This Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Barron’s highlights miners like Freeport as beneficiaries if geopolitical fears ease and copper resumes its rally — a directional bullish thesis tied to commodity fundamentals and risk sentiment. Copper Is a ‘Peace’ Commodity. Own These Miners in a Market Recovery.
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamental support: commentary and screens (Zacks/Yahoo) note FCX’s history of earnings beats and strong recent returns, which can sustain momentum traders and buy-the-rumor flows. Will Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Neutral Sentiment: RBC reiterated a Hold rating, which tempers the buy-side enthusiasm and signals mixed analyst views on valuation and near-term catalysts. RBC Capital Sticks to Its Hold Rating for Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)
• Neutral Sentiment: Several valuation pieces ask whether the recent ~100%+ one-year rally has already priced in the copper story, creating cautious positioning among value-focused investors. Is It Too Late To Consider Freeport McMoRan (FCX) After A 115% One Year Rally
• Negative Sentiment: Bear case: a recent Seeking Alpha piece argues the copper rally should be faded and cautions on upside from current levels — a viewpoint that can pressure momentum traders if it gains traction. Freeport-McMoRan: Fade The Copper Rally

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.