Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) Beats Stock Market Upswing: What Investors Need to Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

In the latest market close, Freeport-McMoRan (FCX - Free Report) reached $50.55, with a +1.57% movement compared to the previous day. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.9% gain on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow gained 0.81%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, added 1.22%.

Shares of the mining company witnessed a gain of 20.22% over the previous month, beating the performance of the Basic Materials sector with its gain of 7.23% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.15%.

Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of Freeport-McMoRan in its upcoming earnings disclosure. It is anticipated that the company will report an EPS of $0.42, marking a 7.69% rise compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $6.44 billion, showing a 10.65% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.

For the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $1.59 per share and a revenue of $25.95 billion, representing changes of +3.25% and +13.52%, respectively, from the prior year.

Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts for Freeport-McMoRan. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, there's been a 5.16% fall in the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate. Right now, Freeport-McMoRan possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Looking at its valuation, Freeport-McMoRan is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 31.22. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 21.2, so one might conclude that Freeport-McMoRan is trading at a premium comparatively.

Investors should also note that FCX has a PEG ratio of 3.67 right now. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. FCX's industry had an average PEG ratio of 0.84 as of yesterday's close.

The Mining - Non Ferrous industry is part of the Basic Materials sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 89, putting it in the top 36% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the strength of our separate industry groups by calculating the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks contained within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (FCX) - free report >>

Published in