Freeport-McMoRan in a World of Debt

Institutional shareholders including BlackRock (BLK) , which held 3.1% of Freeport as of Sept. 30, have blasted the way Freeport announced the deal and tried to explain it in a conference call Wednesday.

"Congratulations on making one of the worst teleconferences I've ever heard to justify a deal," was the comment reportedly made by the manager of BlackRock's $12 billion World Mining Fund, when he spoke with Freeport Chief Executive Officer Richard Adkerson on the company's conference call. "I haven't heard anything on this call that in any way justifies why these companies should be put together."

This suggests there will be plenty of explaining left to do by FCX and the possibility of a shareholder backlash that the officers and directors who announced this lofty transaction may not have been anticipating.

All shareholders can do for now is to listen and watch carefully. The after-shocks of today's momentous events, including the share price of FCX having the single biggest one-day drop since December 2008 when the company suspended its dividend, are just beginning to unfold.

At the time of publication the author had a position in FCX.

Jim Cramer and Stephanie Link actively manage a real money portfolio for his charitable trust- enjoy advance notice of every trade, full access to the portfolio, and deep coverage of the latest economic events and market movements.