First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,121,300 shares, a growth of 14.5% from the June 30th total of 4,473,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 181,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 28.2 days.

First Quantum Minerals Price Performance

Shares of OTCMKTS:FQVLF traded down $0.02 on Monday, reaching $12.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 83,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 299,197. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.46. The company has a market cap of $10.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.11 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 2.68. First Quantum Minerals has a 52-week low of $6.92 and a 52-week high of $29.79.

First Quantum Minerals (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.04 billion. First Quantum Minerals had a negative net margin of 24.07% and a negative return on equity of 0.57%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that First Quantum Minerals will post -0.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of First Quantum Minerals in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut shares of First Quantum Minerals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. BMO Capital Markets cut shares of First Quantum Minerals from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of First Quantum Minerals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Quantum Minerals presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.00.

About First Quantum Minerals

First Quantum Minerals Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, and production of mineral properties. It primarily explores for copper, nickel, pyrite, silver, gold, and zinc ores, as well as produces acid. The company has operating mines located in Zambia, Panama, Finland, Turkey, Spain, Australia, and Mauritania, as well as a development project in Zambia.