Saturna Capital Corp Sells 35,957 Shares of Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

Key Points

• Saturna Capital Corp sharply reduced its Southern Copper stake by 83.2% in the first quarter, selling 35,957 shares and leaving it with 7,282 shares valued at about $1.25 million.
• Southern Copper recently announced a 1.012-for-1 stock split effective Aug. 11 and increased its quarterly dividend to $1.10 per share from $1.00, implying a 2.3% yield.
• Analysts remain mixed on SCCO: the consensus rating is “Reduce” with an average price target of $148.10, even though several firms recently raised their targets or upgraded the stock.

Saturna Capital Corp lowered its stake in Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Free Report) by 83.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,282 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 35,957 shares during the period. Saturna Capital Corp's holdings in Southern Copper were worth $1,253,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 6,030 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $865,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al grew its position in shares of Southern Copper by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 6,072 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $871,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,910 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $417,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 6,379 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $915,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, Venture Visionary Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Southern Copper by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 6,998 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,004,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 7.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on SCCO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Southern Copper from $127.00 to $131.50 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $146.00 to $158.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Southern Copper from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Southern Copper from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Southern Copper from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $178.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and seven have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $148.10.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

NYSE:SCCO opened at $187.92 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $155.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.06, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.11. Southern Copper Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $88.73 and a fifty-two week high of $223.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 3.89 and a current ratio of 4.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $180.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $182.80.

Southern Copper shares are set to split on Tuesday, August 11th. The 1.012-1 split was recently announced. The newly issued shares will be payable to shareholders after the closing bell on Monday, August 10th.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This is a positive change from Southern Copper's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 11th. Southern Copper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total transaction of $35,564.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,807 shares of the company's stock, valued at $321,320.74. This represents a 9.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 404 shares of company stock worth $74,108 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

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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