Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 2,191,926 Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,502,220 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,191,926 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 2.05% of Freeport-McMoRan worth $1,123,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FCX. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 487.8% during 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 in the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 46.8% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 740 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 4.0 %

FCX stock opened at $38.36 on Monday. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. has a one year low of $33.98 and a one year high of $55.24. The firm has a market cap of $55.13 billion, a PE ratio of 29.74, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.87. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $38.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.98. 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 (NYSE:FCX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.05). Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 7.42% and a return on equity of 7.50%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current year.

Freeport-McMoRan Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. Freeport-McMoRan’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FCX has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Freeport-McMoRan from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $51.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $48.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Dbs Bank raised shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.04.

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.