Barclays PLC Increases Stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. $SQM

Key Points

• Barclays PLC increased its stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 277.9% in Q3, buying 600,975 shares to hold 817,223 shares (about 0.29% of SQM) worth roughly $35.1 million.
• Quarterly results showed an EPS miss of $0.64 versus $0.75 expected, but revenue beat at $1.32 billion (up 23.3% year-over-year).
• Analyst sentiment has turned more bullish with several upgrades and higher targets (JPMorgan $93, Deutsche Bank $91, UBS $79); the consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $70.63.

Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM - Free Report) by 277.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 817,223 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 600,975 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.29% of Sociedad Quimica y Minera worth $35,124,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Wyoming boosted its stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 96.1% during the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,061 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 57.2% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,011 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $133,000 after acquiring an additional 1,096 shares in the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the third quarter worth $139,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the 2nd quarter valued at about $146,000. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $201,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 12.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SQM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. UBS Group set a $79.00 price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $88.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $79.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sociedad Quimica y Minera has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.63.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of SQM opened at $76.69 on Wednesday. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a 52-week low of $29.36 and a 52-week high of $86.13. The stock has a market cap of $21.91 billion, a PE ratio of 37.41 and a beta of 0.99. The firm's fifty day moving average is $75.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.25. The company has a quick ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 3.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 27th. The basic materials company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.24 billion. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 12.85% and a return on equity of 9.69%. Sociedad Quimica y Minera's revenue for the quarter was up 23.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.42 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post -1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 30th were given a dividend of $0.1236 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 30th. Sociedad Quimica y Minera's payout ratio is presently 5.85%.

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.

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