Leavell Investment Management Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)

Leavell Investment Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 73,629 shares of the natural resource company’s stock after selling 5,556 shares during the quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Freeport-McMoRan were worth $2,804,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew 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 worth $28,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its position in Freeport-McMoRan by 150.4% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 576 shares of the natural resource company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Freeport-McMoRan in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Freeport-McMoRan by 46.8% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 740 shares of the natural resource company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Freeport-McMoRan during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.77% of the company’s stock.

Freeport-McMoRan Price Performance

FCX stock opened at $37.97 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $54.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.85. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.89 and a 1 year high of $55.24. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.92.

Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The natural resource company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts predict that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FCX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target 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. Argus lowered shares of Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Freeport-McMoRan from $48.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Freeport-McMoRan from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $48.00 to $40.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Raymond James lifted their target price on Freeport-McMoRan from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Freeport-McMoRan has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.46.

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.