Nordea Investment Management AB Buys 109,857 Shares of Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

Key Points

• Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Southern Copper by 74% in Q4, buying 109,857 shares to hold 258,341 shares valued at about $37.14 million.
• Southern Copper beat Q4 EPS estimates ($1.55 vs. $1.54) on $3.87 billion in revenue and raised its quarterly dividend to $1.00 (annualized $4.00, ~2.5% yield).
• Insiders sold 9,526 shares totaling roughly $1.99 million last quarter, and analysts' consensus is negative with an average rating of "Reduce" and a $139.99 price target.

Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Free Report) by 74.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 258,341 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 109,857 shares during the quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB's holdings in Southern Copper were worth $37,142,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in SCCO. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southern Copper during the third quarter worth about $25,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 65.1% in the third quarter. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. now owns 213 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. United Community Bank bought a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Southern Copper by 30.4% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 360 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 7.94% of the company's stock.

Southern Copper Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SCCO opened at $159.63 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $129.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.03. The business's 50 day moving average is $191.09 and its 200-day moving average is $152.47. The company has a current ratio of 3.89, a quick ratio of 3.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Southern Copper Corporation has a 1-year low of $74.84 and a 1-year high of $223.88.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.01. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 41.97% and a net margin of 32.30%.The firm had revenue of $3.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.98 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is a positive change from Southern Copper's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 10th. Southern Copper's payout ratio is 75.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 193 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.60, for a total transaction of $33,697.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,707 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $298,042.20. This trade represents a 10.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lerdo De Tejada Leon Contreras sold 9,326 shares of Southern Copper stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.56, for a total transaction of $1,954,344.91. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 605 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $126,783.04. The trade was a 93.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 9,526 shares of company stock valued at $1,989,373 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SCCO. Zacks Research downgraded Southern Copper from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Southern Copper from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating and issued a $127.91 price objective on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Citigroup reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $190.38 price target on shares of Southern Copper and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and eight have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $139.99.

About Southern Copper

Southern Copper Corporation NYSE: SCCO is a large, integrated copper producer whose operations span the full value chain from exploration and mining to smelting, refining and the sale of copper and other metal products. The company produces a range of copper products including copper concentrate and refined cathodes, and recovers valuable byproducts such as molybdenum, silver and zinc. Southern Copper concentrates on high-volume, long-life assets designed to support steady production and processing capabilities.

Southern Copper's operations are concentrated in Peru and Mexico, where it owns and operates multiple large-scale mining and processing facilities.

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