Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) is another stock that started the day on a low, with its share price plunging to $53.62. There were no specific reasons for the drop in share prices of the national bank. One of the probable reasons could be a recent report from Credit Suisse concerning the earnings of Citigroup. According to the report, the analyst group is expecting earnings per share of $1.37 for the investment bank during the second quarter, which is better than the Street’s estimate of $1.36. However, it does represent a 10% quarter-over-quarter decline in the earnings of Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C), as the bank reported EPS of $1.52 in the first quarter of 2015. The hedge fund sentiment was somewhat bearish towards the nationalized bank, with the number of hedge fund investors dropping by 10 to 126 at the end of the first quarter. However, the aggregate investments from hedge funds were up to $11.63 billion on March 31 compared to the previous investments of $11.27 billion on December 31. Despite the negative sentiment, it is important to consider that Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) was in Barclays’ list of “Americas Top Picks List” for 2015. The fellow investment firm emphasized factors such as Citigroup’s focus towards growing its core business and its improving growth rate in emerging markets. Eagle Capital Management, led by Boykin Curry, was the largest investor of Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) in our database with a position valued at $1.35 billion from ownership of 26.3 million shares of the company.
The primary reason behind the decline in the share price of Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX) was the slumping price of copper ore. According to Reuters, the London Metal Exchange reported the price of copper dropping as low as $5,428.50 per tonne, which is the lowest level since January 30. Another reason behind the dribbling prices of the mineral was the lower demand reported from China, and it is a major concern for the market because China is among the largest consumers of copper in the world. The S&P GSCI commodities index, reported its steepest drop since November last year, closing at $412.51 on Monday. It is important to note that the shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX) have dropped 28.03% year-to-date. Smart money has a negative outlook of the stock of the mineral company, with 31 hedge funds maintaining positions worth $258.10 million at the end of the first quarter, a steep drop from the $615.11 million in shares that 49 investors held at the end of 2014. Mario Gabelli’s GAMCO Investors was one of the members of the smart money that maintained a position in Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX), owning 2.44 million shares of the metal mining company valued at $46.21 million.
Disclosure: None
