SG Americas Securities LLC Increases Position in Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) by 37.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 53,678 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,543 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Southern Copper were worth $6,514,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Southern Copper by 50.1% during the third quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,546 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 1,183 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 6.1% during the third quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,571 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $797,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its position in shares of Southern Copper by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 36,704 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,454,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New purchased a new position in shares of Southern Copper in the 3rd quarter worth about $220,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in Southern Copper by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 195,595 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,737,000 after purchasing an additional 11,485 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Southern Copper Trading Up 6.2%

NYSE:SCCO opened at $170.55 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $138.52 billion, a PE ratio of 35.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 4.52, a quick ratio of 3.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $119.82. Southern Copper Corporation has a 12 month low of $74.84 and a 12 month high of $171.08.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.09. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 38.74% and a net margin of 30.98%.The firm had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Research analysts forecast that Southern Copper Corporation will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Copper Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th were paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 12th. Southern Copper’s payout ratio is currently 75.47%.

Insider Activity at Southern Copper

In other news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total value of $55,600.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,265 shares in the company, valued at $175,835. This represents a 24.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 948 shares of company stock worth $131,130. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on SCCO shares. Itau BBA Securities lowered shares of Southern Copper from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $126.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $155.00 price target on shares of Southern Copper and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $144.00 price objective on Southern Copper and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $143.00 target price (up from $135.00) on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $115.00 target price (up previously from $89.00) on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $123.85.

Southern Copper Profile

Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE: SCCO) is a large, integrated copper producer whose operations span the full value chain from exploration and mining to smelting, refining and the sale of copper and other metal products. The company produces a range of copper products including copper concentrate and refined cathodes, and recovers valuable byproducts such as molybdenum, silver and zinc. Southern Copper concentrates on high-volume, long-life assets designed to support steady production and processing capabilities.

Southern Copper’s operations are concentrated in Peru and Mexico, where it owns and operates multiple large-scale mining and processing facilities.