Candriam S.C.A. Lowers Stock Holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. $SQM

Candriam S.C.A. lessened its holdings in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM) by 23.0% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 197,600 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 59,000 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera were worth $15,994,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SQM. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 138.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the period. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the third quarter valued at $43,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 37.0% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 656 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the period. Finally, Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the third quarter valued at $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 12.41% of the company’s stock.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Stock Performance

Shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera stock traded down $0.94 on Friday, hitting $73.15. The stock had a trading volume of 686,512 shares, compared to its average volume of 908,739. The stock has a market cap of $20.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 2.76, a quick ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a 52-week low of $35.67 and a 52-week high of $98.00. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $80.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.77.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

SQM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. CLSA upgraded Sociedad Quimica y Minera to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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 note on Tuesday, June 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.