Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) Stock

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) had its price objective raised by stock analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $58.00 to $72.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the natural resource company’s stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 6.30% from the company’s current price.

FCX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Argus raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $68.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Freeport-McMoRan from $72.00 to $71.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $77.00 target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.02.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

NYSE FCX opened at $67.74 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.01, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.48. Freeport-McMoRan has a 1-year low of $32.12 and a 1-year high of $69.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 2.29 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $61.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.41.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $5.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.42 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 8.50%.Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.31 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Douglas N. Currault II sold 75,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.52, for a total value of $4,839,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 219,181 shares in the company, valued at $14,141,558.12. The trade was a 25.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Ellie L. Mikes sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.03, for a total value of $682,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 40,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,529,149.19. This trade represents a 21.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 565,145 shares of company stock worth $35,839,918 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCX. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,962.9% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 722 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 687 shares during the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Freeport-McMoRan

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.