Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. Cuts Stock Holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. $SQM

Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. reduced its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM) by 25.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 122,419 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 41,038 shares during the period. Sociedad Quimica y Minera makes up about 1.1% of Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd.’s holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera were worth $9,909,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 37.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 138.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 14,363 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $988,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 45.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,122 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. 12.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Price Performance

NYSE SQM opened at $72.63 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $82.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.55. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a 52 week low of $35.37 and a 52 week high of $98.00. The company has a quick ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.48, a PEG ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 0.97.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, May 16th. The basic materials company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 15.38% and a return on equity of 11.99%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post 7.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $1.0295 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.7%. Sociedad Quimica y Minera’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Sociedad Quimica y Minera from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $94.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $100.00 price target on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.50.

About Sociedad Quimica y Minera

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA (NYSE: SQM) is a leading global producer of specialty chemicals and minerals headquartered in Santiago, Chile. The company focuses on the extraction and processing of key inputs for the agricultural, industrial and high‐tech sectors. Its core business activities include the mining of lithium, potassium and iodine, as well as the manufacture of value‐added products derived from these raw materials.

SQM’s product portfolio spans lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide used in electric vehicle batteries and energy storage systems; potassium chloride and potassium nitrate fertilizers designed for precision agriculture; and iodine and its derivatives for pharmaceutical, food and electronics applications.