Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 70,961 Shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Free Report) by 15.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 397,947 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 70,961 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC's holdings in Southern Copper were worth $37,192,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SCCO. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 117.6% in the 1st quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 272 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern Copper in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern Copper in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern Copper in the 4th quarter worth $60,000. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Southern Copper by 53.7% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 733 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. 7.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Copper Trading Down 1.8%

NYSE SCCO traded down $1.78 during trading on Thursday, hitting $99.05. The stock had a trading volume of 526,749 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,424,171. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a current ratio of 3.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.02. Southern Copper Corporation has a one year low of $74.84 and a one year high of $121.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $96.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.80.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Southern Copper had a net margin of 30.00% and a return on equity of 39.39%. Sell-side analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Copper Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. Southern Copper's payout ratio is currently 61.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered Southern Copper from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered Southern Copper from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $83.50 to $79.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. UBS Group downgraded shares of Southern Copper from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $105.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Itau BBA Securities raised shares of Southern Copper from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $91.00.

Southern Copper Profile

Southern Copper Corporation engages in mining, exploring, smelting, and refining copper and other minerals in Peru, Mexico, Argentina, Ecuador, and Chile. The company is involved in the mining, milling, and flotation of copper ore to produce copper and molybdenum concentrates; smelting of copper concentrates to produce blister and anode copper; refining of anode copper to produce copper cathodes; production of molybdenum concentrate and sulfuric acid; production of refined silver, gold, and other materials; and mining and processing of zinc, copper, molybdenum, silver, gold, and lead.