Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Boosts Stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 1.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 54,567 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after purchasing an additional 782 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $2,724,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in FCX. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,170.7% during the 2nd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 521 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new position in Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FCX opened at $43.60 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $46.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.49. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.38 and a 12 month high of $55.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.91.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The natural resource company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.01. Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 7.81% and a return on equity of 7.40%. The firm had revenue of $6.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.39 EPS. Freeport-McMoRan’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th were paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.90%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $52.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently 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.