Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $174.27 and last traded at $175.5860, with a volume of 363244 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SCCO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Itau BBA Securities lowered 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. Citigroup reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $182.00 price target on Southern Copper and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. HSBC reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $118.00 price objective (up from $105.00) on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Friday, October 17th. 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 given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $127.65.

Southern Copper Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $141.92 billion, a PE ratio of 36.63, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $142.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $120.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 3.91 and a current ratio of 4.52.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.05 billion. Equities analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Copper Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Southern Copper

In other news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.00, for a total value of $55,600.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,265 shares in the company, valued at $175,835. The trade was a 24.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 948 shares of company stock valued at $131,130. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Southern Copper by 4.3% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 941,712 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $95,273,000 after buying an additional 38,856 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 6.5% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 140,489 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $14,326,000 after acquiring an additional 8,531 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 82.5% during the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 5,085 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $514,000 after purchasing an additional 2,298 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Southern Copper during the 2nd quarter worth about $5,436,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK grew its holdings in Southern Copper by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 277,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,028,000 after purchasing an additional 3,449 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

About Southern Copper

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.