First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,589,600 shares, a decline of 20.8% from the September 15th total of 7,057,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 256,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 21.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on FQVLF. Citigroup raised First Quantum Minerals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Morgan Stanley cut First Quantum Minerals from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.00.

First Quantum Minerals Stock Performance

First Quantum Minerals stock traded down $0.56 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.70. 133,745 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 270,492. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 2.68. The stock has a market cap of $10.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.47 and a beta of 1.50. First Quantum Minerals has a 12-month low of $6.92 and a 12-month high of $23.82. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.54.

First Quantum Minerals (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The basic materials company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.02. First Quantum Minerals had a negative return on equity of 0.57% and a negative net margin of 24.07%. The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. Equities research analysts predict that First Quantum Minerals will post -0.23 EPS for the current year.

About First Quantum Minerals

First Quantum Minerals Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, and production of mineral properties. It primarily explores for copper, nickel, pyrite, silver, gold, and zinc ores, as well as produces acid. The company has operating mines located in Zambia, Panama, Finland, Turkey, Spain, Australia, and Mauritania, as well as a development project in Zambia.