SG Americas Securities LLC Has $13.79 Million Position in Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) by 79.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 96,135 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 42,457 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Southern Copper were worth $13,792,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 42.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 44,879 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,194,000 after purchasing an additional 13,293 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Southern Copper by 17.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 6,705 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $627,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in Southern Copper by 21.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 5,944 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $556,000 after purchasing an additional 1,052 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Southern Copper by 21.0% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 75,319 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $7,620,000 after purchasing an additional 13,048 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its position in Southern Copper by 63.8% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 7,363 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $745,000 after purchasing an additional 2,869 shares during the period. 7.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

NYSE:SCCO opened at $161.91 on Friday. Southern Copper Corporation has a twelve month low of $74.84 and a twelve month high of $223.88. The company has a quick ratio of 3.40, a current ratio of 3.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $189.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $153.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $132.62 billion, a PE ratio of 30.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.03.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.73 billion. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 41.97% and a net margin of 32.30%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Southern Copper Corporation will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is a boost from Southern Copper’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 10th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Southern Copper’s payout ratio is presently 75.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Lerdo De Tejada Leon Contreras sold 9,326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.56, for a total transaction of $1,954,344.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 605 shares in the company, valued at $126,783.04. This represents a 93.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 193 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.60, for a total transaction of $33,697.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $298,042.20. The trade was a 10.16% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,526 shares of company stock valued at $1,989,373. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on SCCO shares. Scotiabank reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Zacks Research cut shares of Southern Copper from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Southern Copper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $162.00 to $175.00 in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and eight have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern Copper presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $139.20.

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.