Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO Shares Purchased by Capital World Investors

Capital World Investors boosted its position in Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) by 36.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,437,608 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,708,693 shares during the quarter. Capital World Investors owned about 0.79% of Southern Copper worth $781,268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Southern Copper during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,976,000. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in Southern Copper by 4.3% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 941,712 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $95,273,000 after buying an additional 38,856 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 5.7% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 148,484 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,778,000 after acquiring an additional 7,995 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 2,631.9% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 13,441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,631,000 after acquiring an additional 12,949 shares during the period. Finally, Alps Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 54.2% in the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 35,647 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $4,326,000 after acquiring an additional 12,532 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

Shares of SCCO opened at $195.91 on Wednesday. Southern Copper Corporation has a 52 week low of $74.84 and a 52 week high of $223.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 3.40 and a current ratio of 3.89. The company has a market capitalization of $159.11 billion, a PE ratio of 36.82, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $188.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.78.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 10th. This is a boost from Southern Copper’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Southern Copper’s payout ratio is 75.19%.

Insider Transactions at Southern Copper

In related news, Director Lerdo De Tejada Leon Contreras sold 9,326 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.56, for a total value of $1,954,344.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $126,783.04. This represents a 93.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SCCO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Southern Copper from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Wall Street Zen cut Southern Copper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 1st. UBS Group reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $148.74 price objective (up from $146.75) on shares of Southern Copper in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “sell” rating and issued a $127.91 target price on shares of Southern Copper in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “sell” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and eight have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $139.99.

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.