PXP

Early Wednesday morning, leading copper and gold miner Freeport McMoRan (click ticker for report: ) announced a $9 billion blockbuster deal to acquire its former holding McMoRan Oil & Gas (click ticker for report: ) and independent oil and gas company Plains Exploration & Production (PXP). The deal itself values Plains at approximately $45-50 per share ($25 per share cash/0.6531 shares of FCX per share), while Freeport will pay $14.75 per share for McMoRan Oil & Gas. Given the cloudy long-term outlook for copper and gold mining, mainly a result of the often unfriendly places these resources reside, we think the company is happy to purchase operations in the Gulf and continental US. We’ve seen mine nationalization in both South … Read more