Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. Reduces Holdings in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 339,400 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 64,700 shares during the quarter. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $16,943,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

FCX opened at $46.57 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $46.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.73. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.83 and a 12-month high of $55.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $66.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.99, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.90.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $6.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 7.81%. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.39 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group upgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $54.00 to $55.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Scotiabank dropped their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $52.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Raymond James upped their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.