Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) Downgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to Neutral

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research note released on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $44.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $55.00.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on SQM. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $62.80 to $55.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Berenberg Bank started coverage on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. They issued a hold rating and a $35.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $47.00 to $38.00 and set an underperform rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $45.00 to $36.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $48.69.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Stock Performance

SQM opened at $42.44 on Friday. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile has a 52-week low of $32.24 and a 52-week high of $64.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.12 billion, a PE ratio of 385.82 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 2.19. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $38.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.40.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The basic materials company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile had a net margin of 0.48% and a return on equity of 23.15%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile will post -0.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SQM. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 41.6% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 899,646 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $36,661,000 after buying an additional 264,324 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile during the second quarter worth $8,592,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 8.4% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,144,179 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $105,407,000 after purchasing an additional 165,370 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC lifted its stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 18.9% during the second quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 612,538 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $24,961,000 after purchasing an additional 97,479 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 9.3% during the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,019,368 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $50,112,000 after purchasing an additional 86,811 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 12.41% of the company’s stock.

About Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA produces and distributes specialty plant nutrients, iodine derivatives, lithium derivatives, potassium chloride and sulfate, industrial chemicals, and other products and services. The company offers specialty plant nutrients, including potassium nitrate, sodium nitrate, sodium potassium nitrate, specialty blends, and other specialty fertilizers.