Freeport-McMoRan Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:FCX)

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 83,681 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 64% compared to the average daily volume of 51,110 call options.

Freeport-McMoRan Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of Freeport-McMoRan stock opened at $38.49 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $44.04. Freeport-McMoRan has a 52-week low of $36.26 and a 52-week high of $55.24. The firm has a market cap of $55.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.30.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.05). Freeport-McMoRan had a net margin of 7.81% and a return on equity of 7.40%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Freeport-McMoRan will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FCX. Sanford C. Bernstein cut Freeport-McMoRan from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $51.00 to $46.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $60.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Freeport-McMoRan from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.42.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FCX. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 130.8% during the 4th quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd now owns 16,500 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 70,000 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the fourth quarter worth about $383,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 17,397 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $662,000 after buying an additional 519 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advocates LLC boosted its stake in Freeport-McMoRan by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Advocates LLC now owns 11,345 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $432,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553 shares during the period. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN grew its holdings in shares of Freeport-McMoRan by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 9,913 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $377,000 after buying an additional 887 shares in the last quarter. 80.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Freeport-McMoRan

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.