Mackenzie Financial Corp Buys 50,671 Shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO)

Key Points

• Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in Southern Copper Corporation by 29.7%, acquiring a total of 221,487 shares worth approximately $20.7 million in the first quarter.
• Southern Copper recently announced a dividend of $1.01 per share, which reflects a positive increase from its previous dividend of $0.62, yielding 2.7%.
• Several analysts downgraded their ratings on Southern Copper, with the average recommendation now being a "Hold" and a consensus target price of $91.00.

Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Free Report) by 29.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 221,487 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 50,671 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp's holdings in Southern Copper were worth $20,700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SCCO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 4th quarter valued at $52,738,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 4th quarter valued at $40,226,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Southern Copper by 1,417.7% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 407,912 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $37,173,000 after buying an additional 381,035 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Southern Copper by 44.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,146,537 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $104,484,000 after buying an additional 355,013 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in Southern Copper by 49.6% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 998,923 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $91,032,000 after purchasing an additional 331,319 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.94% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SCCO shares. UBS Group cut shares of Southern Copper from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $105.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Southern Copper from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Southern Copper from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $83.50 to $79.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Itau BBA Securities upgraded shares of Southern Copper from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern Copper currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $91.00.

Southern Copper Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of SCCO stock traded down $2.59 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $91.57. The stock had a trading volume of 1,478,092 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,782,969. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $97.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.81. Southern Copper Corporation has a 52-week low of $74.84 and a 52-week high of $121.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.91 billion, a PE ratio of 20.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 3.71, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Southern Copper's previous -- dividend of $0.62. This represents a dividend yield of 270.0%. Southern Copper's dividend payout ratio is presently 61.27%.

About Southern Copper

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.