Credit Agricole S A Sells 46,188 Shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. $SQM

Key Points

• Credit Agricole S A reduced its stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. by 45.1%, holding 56,123 shares worth approximately $2.23 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Several other institutional investors, including Nuveen LLC and RWC Asset Management LLP, made significant acquisitions in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the first quarter.
• Sociedad Quimica y Minera posted a quarterly revenue of $1.04 billion, falling short of analysts' estimates, alongside earnings per share that missed expectations.

Credit Agricole S A reduced its holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM - Free Report) by 45.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 56,123 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 46,188 shares during the quarter. Credit Agricole S A's holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera were worth $2,230,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SQM. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $261,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 121.9% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 61,519 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,236,000 after acquiring an additional 33,797 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the fourth quarter worth $1,121,000. MGO One Seven LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the fourth quarter worth $642,000. Finally, Two Sigma Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the fourth quarter worth $564,000. 12.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SQM shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $36.50 to $43.50 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sociedad Quimica y Minera has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $43.10.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Stock Up 2.3%

NYSE SQM traded up $1.05 on Friday, hitting $46.73. 344,777 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,272,728. The company has a market cap of $13.35 billion, a PE ratio of 27.98 and a beta of 1.03. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a 12 month low of $29.36 and a 12 month high of $47.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $39.68 and a 200-day moving average of $37.68. The company has a current ratio of 2.92, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.08 billion. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a return on equity of 9.09% and a net margin of 11.29%.The firm's revenue was down 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post -1.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Profile

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA operates as a mining company worldwide. The company offers specialty plant nutrients, including sodium potassium nitrate, specialty blends, and other specialty fertilizers under Ultrasol, Qrop, Speedfol, Allganic, Ultrasoline, ProP, and Prohydric brands. It also provides iodine and its derivatives for use in medical, agricultural, industrial, and human and animal nutrition products comprising x-ray contrast media, biocides, antiseptics and disinfectants, pharmaceutical intermediates, polarizing films for LCD and LED screens, chemicals, organic compounds, and pigments, as well as added to edible salt to prevent iodine deficiency disorders.