StockNews.com Lowers FMC (NYSE:FMC) to Sell

StockNews.com cut shares of FMC (NYSE:FMC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. KeyCorp raised their price target on FMC from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Mizuho cut their price target on FMC from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America downgraded FMC from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and cut their price target for the stock from $60.00 to $57.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. UBS Group raised FMC from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their price target for the stock from $61.00 to $84.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Loop Capital raised their price target on FMC from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, FMC has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $71.75.

FMC Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:FMC opened at $56.94 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business’s 50 day moving average is $58.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.31. FMC has a 52 week low of $49.49 and a 52 week high of $124.61. The company has a market cap of $7.11 billion, a PE ratio of 5.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.87.

FMC (NYSE:FMC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). FMC had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 29.45%. The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.37 EPS. On average, analysts predict that FMC will post 3.88 EPS for the current year.

FMC Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. FMC’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.03%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Sandifer bought 2,150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.22 per share, for a total transaction of $127,323.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 50,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,966,211.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FMC

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of FMC by 32.6% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 8,467 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $539,000 after acquiring an additional 2,084 shares during the last quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of FMC during the first quarter valued at $151,000. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of FMC during the first quarter valued at $399,000. Calton & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of FMC during the first quarter valued at $411,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of FMC by 13.4% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,422 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $855,000 after buying an additional 1,583 shares in the last quarter. 91.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About FMC

FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company, provides crop protection, plant health, and professional pest and turf management products. It develops, markets, and sells crop protection chemicals that includes insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides; and biologicals, crop nutrition, and seed treatment products, which are used in agriculture to enhance crop yield and quality by controlling a range of insects, weeds, and diseases, as well as in non-agricultural markets for pest control.