Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) Short Interest Update

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) was the target of a large increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 22,880,000 shares, an increase of 26.5% from the March 31st total of 18,090,000 shares. Currently, 1.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 14,480,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Performance

FCX traded up $1.10 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $50.50. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 19,037,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,097,275. Freeport-McMoRan has a 52 week low of $32.83 and a 52 week high of $52.42. The company’s 50-day moving average is $44.70 and its 200-day moving average is $40.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 2.35. The firm has a market cap of $72.44 billion, a PE ratio of 44.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.18 and a beta of 2.04.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.70 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.17% and a net margin of 6.97%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.52 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. Freeport-McMoRan’s payout ratio is 26.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FCX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Bank of America raised Freeport-McMoRan from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $59.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. HSBC upped their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $39.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Raymond James upped their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $49.50 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.07.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signature Wealth Management Partners LLC bought a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the 1st quarter worth $216,000. Highview Capital Management LLC DE bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the first quarter worth $1,502,000. First National Trust Co increased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 10.3% in the first quarter. First National Trust Co now owns 5,362 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Legacy Bridge LLC increased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 111.6% in the first quarter. Legacy Bridge LLC now owns 3,692 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 1,947 shares during the period. Finally, SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 8.5% in the first quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 4,677 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

About Freeport-McMoRan

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.