Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Sells 109,495 Shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. reduced its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM - Free Report) by 50.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 109,606 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 109,495 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera were worth $4,355,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SQM. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $393,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 803.4% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,075 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 956 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $261,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 13,649 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $496,000 after buying an additional 923 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 111,555 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,056,000 after buying an additional 11,701 shares during the period. 12.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SQM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $44.00 to $39.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $55.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sociedad Quimica y Minera currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $41.14.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Trading Up 3.6%

Shares of SQM traded up $1.38 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $39.83. The stock had a trading volume of 901,307 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,142,019. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $29.36 and a fifty-two week high of $45.89. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.02. The firm has a market cap of $11.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.92 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by ($0.15). The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.05 billion. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a return on equity of 11.71% and a net margin of 13.45%. Sociedad Quimica y Minera's revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned ($3.04) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post -1.31 EPS for the current year.

About Sociedad Quimica y Minera

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.