Royal Fund Management LLC Buys 38,500 Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Royal Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 255.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 53,600 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after buying an additional 38,500 shares during the period. Royal Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $2,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 1,170.7% during the second quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 521 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC bought a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. 80.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Freeport-McMoRan Trading Down 0.6 %

FCX stock traded down $0.27 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $48.32. The company had a trading volume of 425,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,236,089. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $44.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.78. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.83 and a 12 month high of $55.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market cap of $69.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.00, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.90.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $6.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6 billion. Freeport-McMoRan had a return on equity of 7.60% and a net margin of 7.83%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.35 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is 26.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas upgraded Freeport-McMoRan to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Raymond James upped their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Freeport-McMoRan in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $54.00 to $55.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given 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 $53.00.

Freeport-McMoRan Company 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.