First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,333,700 shares, an increase of 17.3% from the December 15th total of 6,252,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 263,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 27.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FQVLF. Canaccord Genuity Group downgraded First Quantum Minerals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays raised shares of First Quantum Minerals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.00.

First Quantum Minerals Price Performance

FQVLF stock traded up $0.17 during trading on Friday, reaching $13.16. The stock had a trading volume of 180,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 175,312. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $13.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.92. First Quantum Minerals has a 52 week low of $8.22 and a 52 week high of $15.23.

First Quantum Minerals (OTCMKTS:FQVLF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The basic materials company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.02 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion. First Quantum Minerals had a negative net margin of 32.41% and a negative return on equity of 2.69%. As a group, equities analysts expect that First Quantum Minerals will post -0.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Quantum Minerals Company Profile

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.