142,200 Shares in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. $SQM Acquired by Premier Fund Managers Ltd

Key Points

• Premier Fund Managers purchased 142,200 shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) in Q4, a new position valued at approximately $9.8 million.
• Dividend announced: SQM declared a quarterly dividend of $1.0295 per share (annualized $4.12) with an ex-dividend/record date of May 8 and payment on May 26, implying a yield of about 4.4%.
• Analyst consensus is mixed: MarketBeat reports an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $71.42—below the recent share price (~$93.69)—while individual ratings range from Strong Buy to Sell.

Premier Fund Managers Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 142,200 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $9,801,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of SQM. Boston Common Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the third quarter worth $2,767,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 33.4% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 71,429 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,070,000 after buying an additional 17,869 shares in the last quarter. Liontrust Investment Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the third quarter valued at $559,000. AIA Group Ltd purchased a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,633,000. Finally, Peregrine Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 58.6% during the 3rd quarter. Peregrine Investment Management Inc. now owns 219,150 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $9,419,000 after acquiring an additional 80,970 shares in the last quarter. 12.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SQM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Zacks Research cut Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $71.42.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Stock Up 1.1%

NYSE:SQM opened at $93.69 on Thursday. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a 52-week low of $29.36 and a 52-week high of $95.56. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $71.03. The company has a market capitalization of $26.76 billion, a PE ratio of 45.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.28 and a beta of 1.00.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The basic materials company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 12.85% and a return on equity of 9.69%. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post 6.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $1.0295 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Sociedad Quimica y Minera's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.85%.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Company Profile

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.

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