Freeport-McMoRan's $3.6B Trading Spike Sparks 19th-Ranked Volume Amid 16.95% Drop

On September 24, 2025, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (FCX) saw a surge in trading activity with a volume of $3.60 billion, marking a 451.93% increase from the previous day. The stock ranked 19th in volume among listed equities but closed 16.95% lower amid shifting market dynamics.

Analysts highlighted a combination of sector-wide pressures and company-specific factors contributing to the sharp decline. While broader commodities markets faced profit-taking after recent gains, FCX’s exposure to copper and gold volatility intensified the downturn. The unusually high trading volume suggests aggressive positioning adjustments by institutional investors, though no direct earnings or operational updates were cited as catalysts in the immediate term.

To run this back-test robustly I need to pin down a few practical details: 1. Universe • Should we limit ourselves to U.S. listed common stocks (NYSE + NASDAQ + AMEX), or do you have a different universe in mind? 2. Execution prices • Buy at today’s close and sell at tomorrow’s close (typical for end-of-day strategies), or buy at next day’s open and sell that same day’s close? 3. Portfolio construction • Equal-weight each of the 500 names, with full turnover every day (i.e., a fresh 500-stock basket each session)? 4. Frictions • Assume zero transaction costs and no slippage, or apply a commission/slippage estimate? Once these points are settled I can generate the daily trade list, create the position-level P&L, and deliver cumulative return, volatility, drawdown, Sharpe, etc., from 2022-01-03 through today. Let me know your preferences (or just say “use default assumptions”) and I’ll proceed.