| Freeport-McMoRan Bull Vs. Bear Battle: Upgraded At Citi, Downgraded At Bank Of America | |
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Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE: FCX) were trading higher Monday morning following mixed news as shares were upgraded at Citigroup and downgraded from analyst at Bank of America.
Bank Of America: Bleak Near-Term Outlook
Oscar Carbera of Bank of America downgraded shares to Underperform from Neutral with a price target lowered to $19 from a previous $22.50, due to a "bleak" near-term commodities outlook.
Carbera noted the downgrade stems from Bank of America's commodities analyst 10-16 percent lower 2016-2017 copper and 2017-18 Brent oil price estimates. As such, the analyst lowered Freeport's 2015-2017 total free cash flow estimate by 45 percent to $2.7 billion.
Moreover, Carbera lowered his fiscal 2015 earnings per share estimate by 9 percent to $0.61 in addition to 2016's earnings per share estimates which were slashed by 11 percent to $0.71. However, the analyst added that there may be a "light at the end of the tunnel" in 2017 driven by Cerro Verde expansion and Grasberg.
Citigroup: Appealing Valuation
Brian Yu of Citigroup upgraded shares to Buy from Neutral with a price target raised to $23 from a previous $19 as shares are trading at an "appealing" valuation.
Yu noted shares of Freeport are down 22 percent year-to-date and the risks going forward are "positively skewed." The analyst added that the company is in a financially better position to weather weak commodity pricing following a recent dividends cut.
Yu said he expects the company to generate "substantial" free cash flow, especially if copper and oil prices bottom out in the first half of 2015 and then recover. A healthier cash flow will allow the company to more rapidly reduce its debt load over the next several years as project capex wanes.
The analyst further explained why valuation is appealing:
"Our previous target price of $19 was based on a target 5.4x 2015E EV/EBITDA and 14x 2015E P/E. Freeport currently trades at 4.5x our 2016E EBITDA and at 5.6x on spot prices versus an average forward multiple of 5.8x in recent years. This was before they acquired their oil & gas assets, which should arguably trade at a higher multiple based on trough earnings and organic growth potential."
Latest Ratings for FCX
Date | Firm | Action | From | To |
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Apr 2015 | Citigroup | Upgrades | Neutral | Buy | Apr 2015 | Bank of America | Downgrades | Neutral | Underperform | Apr 2015 | Deutsche Bank | Maintains | | Buy |
View More Analyst Ratings for FCX
View the Latest Analyst Ratings
See more from Benzinga © 2015 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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Freeport McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc.
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PRODUCTEUR |
CODE : FCX |
ISIN : US35671D8570 |
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ProfilIndicateurs de MarchéVALEUR : Projets & res.Communiqués de PresseRapport annuelRISQUE : Profile actifsContactez la cie |
Freeport McMoran est une société de production minière d'or et de cuivre basée aux Etats-Unis D'Amerique. Freeport McMoran est productrice d'or, de cuivre, d'argent, de cobalt et de molybdène au Chili, au Perou, en Indonesie et en Republique Democratique Du Congo, en développement de projets de cuivre au Perou, et détient divers projets d'exploration au Chili. Ses principaux projets en production sont CANDELARIA, EL ABRA, CHINO - MILL, HENDERSON, MIAMI - ROM LEACH, MORENCI - MILL, OJOS DEL SALADO, MORENCI et MORENCI - ROM LEACH au Chili, GRASBERG, SIERRITA et BAGDAD en Indonesie, TENKE FUNGURUME et TYRONE en Republique Democratique Du Congo et CERRO VERDE au Perou, son principal projet en développement est SAFFORD au Perou et ses principaux projets en exploration sont BAGDAD - ROM LEACH et CHINO - ROM LEACH au Perou et CERRO VERDE - MILL, CERRO VERDE - CRUSHED LEACH, CERRO VERDE - ROM LEACH, EL ABRA - ROM LEACH et CLIMAX au Chili. Freeport McMoran est cotée aux Etats-Unis D'Amerique et en Allemagne. Sa capitalisation boursière aujourd'hui est 71,8 milliards US$ (67,5 milliards €). La valeur de son action a atteint son plus bas niveau récent le 06 mars 2020 à 10,00 US$, et son plus haut niveau récent le 19 avril 2024 à 49,61 US$. Freeport McMoran possède 1 448 000 000 actions en circulation. |