Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM) Shares Sold by Banco Santander S.A.

Banco Santander S.A. cut its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM - Free Report) by 48.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 18,503 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 17,329 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Sociedad Quimica y Minera were worth $735,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Soros Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the fourth quarter worth $5,619,000. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,071,339 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $38,954,000 after acquiring an additional 18,748 shares in the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the fourth quarter valued at $642,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 121.9% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 61,519 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,236,000 after acquiring an additional 33,797 shares in the last quarter. Finally, White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 86.5% in the fourth quarter. White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 34,244 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,245,000 after acquiring an additional 15,879 shares in the last quarter. 12.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SQM. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $55.00 to $45.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $42.50.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Stock Performance

Sociedad Quimica y Minera stock opened at $36.35 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.23 and a beta of 1.03. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $35.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.04. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a 52 week low of $29.36 and a 52 week high of $45.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($0.15). The business had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.05 billion. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 13.45% and a return on equity of 11.71%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($3.04) earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post -1.31 earnings per share for the current year.

About Sociedad Quimica y Minera

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA operates as a mining company worldwide. The company offers specialty plant nutrients, including sodium potassium nitrate, specialty blends, and other specialty fertilizers under Ultrasol, Qrop, Speedfol, Allganic, Ultrasoline, ProP, and Prohydric brands. It also provides iodine and its derivatives for use in medical, agricultural, industrial, and human and animal nutrition products comprising x-ray contrast media, biocides, antiseptics and disinfectants, pharmaceutical intermediates, polarizing films for LCD and LED screens, chemicals, organic compounds, and pigments, as well as added to edible salt to prevent iodine deficiency disorders.

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