Sowell Financial Services LLC Purchases 8,628 Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Sowell Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 50.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,752 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,628 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $981,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 487.8% in the fourth quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

FCX opened at $34.48 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.73, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.87. The company has a 50-day moving average of $37.98 and a 200-day moving average of $42.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 2.42. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.98 and a 1-year high of $55.24.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.05). Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 7.42% and a return on equity of 7.50%. Equities analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Freeport-McMoRan from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $51.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $47.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $48.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Seven investment 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 data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.75.

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.