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Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) Suffers a Larger Drop Than the General Market: Key Insights

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Freeport-McMoRan (FCX - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $41.40, moving -0.5% from the previous trading session. The stock fell short of the S&P 500, which registered a loss of 0.3% for the day. Elsewhere, the Dow lost 0.54%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.25%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the mining company had gained 5.29% over the past month. This has outpaced the Basic Materials sector's loss of 0.14% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.42% in that time.

Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Freeport-McMoRan in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $0.46, indicating a 17.95% growth compared to the equivalent quarter last year. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $6.45 billion, up 10.81% from the prior-year quarter.

For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $1.68 per share and a revenue of $26.04 billion, signifying shifts of +9.09% and +13.96%, respectively, from the last year.

Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Freeport-McMoRan should also be noted by investors. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has remained unchanged. Freeport-McMoRan currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

From a valuation perspective, Freeport-McMoRan is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 24.76. This signifies a premium in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 12.01 for its industry.

It is also worth noting that FCX currently has a PEG ratio of 1.95. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. As the market closed yesterday, the Mining - Non Ferrous industry was having an average PEG ratio of 0.66.

The Mining - Non Ferrous industry is part of the Basic Materials sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 86, placing it within the top 34% of over 250 industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the vigor of our specific industry groups by computing the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks incorporated in the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.


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