Morgan Stanley upgraded Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX) to "overweight" from "equal weight," while simultaneously slashing its price target to $48 from $54 this morning. The firm sees "balanced potential" for the mining stock, which it believes will benefit from President Donald Trump's copper tariffs.
At last glance, FCX was down 1.1% to trade at $41.41, succumbing to overhead pressure at the 320-day moving average, which has flipped between resistance and support since the start of the year. The security has been slowly climbing since its late July dive, which occurred amid the initial copper tariff buzz. Since the start of the year, the equity is up 9.1%.
Some of the recent rebound could be attributed to short covering, with short interest down 24.5% in the last two weeks. With short interest now representing just 1.7% of the stock's available float, the short squeeze could be losing steam.
When weighing in on FCX, options look like a good way to go. The stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 35% ranks in the low 6th percentile of its annual range.
