FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

FMC Co. (NYSE:FMC) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the fifteen brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $54.00.

FMC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group downgraded FMC from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $66.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $48.00 target price (down from $61.00) on shares of FMC in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays dropped their price target on FMC from $65.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of FMC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of FMC from $79.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 2nd.

FMC Price Performance

Shares of FMC stock opened at $36.72 on Friday. FMC has a 52 week low of $33.80 and a 52 week high of $68.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 13.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $50.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $57.76.

FMC (NYSE:FMC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The basic materials company reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. FMC had a net margin of 8.03% and a return on equity of 9.67%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that FMC will post 3.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

FMC Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.32%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. FMC’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Michael Finian Reilly sold 2,958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.25, for a total value of $163,429.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 25,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,407,107. This represents a 10.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of FMC

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of FMC during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Millburn Ridgefield Corp increased its position in FMC by 186.2% during the third quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp now owns 498 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in FMC by 90.8% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 517 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of FMC by 217.4% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 746 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. boosted its stake in shares of FMC by 250.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 554 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares in the last quarter. 91.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FMC Company Profile

FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company, provides crop protection, plant health, and professional pest and turf management products. It develops, markets, and sells crop protection chemicals that includes insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides; and biologicals, crop nutrition, and seed treatment products, which are used in agriculture to enhance crop yield and quality by controlling a range of insects, weeds, and diseases, as well as in non-agricultural markets for pest control.