Morse Asset Management Inc Sells 3,082 Shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO)

Morse Asset Management Inc cut its holdings in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Free Report) by 23.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,923 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 3,082 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc's holdings in Southern Copper were worth $927,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 117.6% during the 1st quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 272 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern Copper during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 4th quarter worth about $60,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at about $84,000. 7.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Copper Price Performance

Shares of SCCO stock traded up $0.88 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $100.03. 517,171 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,244,426. The company has a quick ratio of 3.22, a current ratio of 3.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Southern Copper Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $74.11 and a fifty-two week high of $118.64. The firm has a market cap of $79.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $96.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $93.67.

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

Southern Copper Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern Copper from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Itau BBA Securities raised shares of Southern Copper from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Southern Copper from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Southern Copper from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $86.00 to $99.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus 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.