Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. $SQM Stake Cut by Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC

Key Points

• Allspring Global Investments cut its SQM stake by 10.7% in the first quarter, selling 67,540 shares and ending with 562,875 shares valued at about $46.1 million.
• Other institutional activity was mixed: some firms boosted holdings sharply, while overall institutional ownership of SQM stands at 12.41%.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious overall, with SQM carrying an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $74.58, even after recent upgrades and target changes.

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM - Free Report) by 10.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 562,875 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 67,540 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.20% of Sociedad Quimica y Minera worth $46,054,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in SQM. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 7,083.3% in the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 289,701 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $19,931,000 after buying an additional 285,668 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 649,528 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $44,688,000 after purchasing an additional 27,035 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd purchased a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the third quarter valued at about $1,633,000. Premier Fund Managers Ltd purchased a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the fourth quarter valued at about $9,801,000. Finally, BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the 4th quarter worth about $19,488,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 12.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SQM. CLSA upgraded Sociedad Quimica y Minera to an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $64.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research cut shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $105.00 to $98.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sociedad Quimica y Minera currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $74.58.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Trading Up 5.0%

NYSE:SQM opened at $69.67 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $19.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 0.97. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a 12 month low of $35.67 and a 12 month high of $98.00. The company has a quick ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company's 50 day moving average is $78.41 and its 200-day moving average is $78.75.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 16th. The basic materials company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 15.38% and a return on equity of 11.99%. Equities analysts anticipate that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

About Sociedad Quimica y Minera

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA NYSE: SQM is a leading global producer of specialty chemicals and minerals headquartered in Santiago, Chile. The company focuses on the extraction and processing of key inputs for the agricultural, industrial and high‐tech sectors. Its core business activities include the mining of lithium, potassium and iodine, as well as the manufacture of value‐added products derived from these raw materials.

SQM's product portfolio spans lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide used in electric vehicle batteries and energy storage systems; potassium chloride and potassium nitrate fertilizers designed for precision agriculture; and iodine and its derivatives for pharmaceutical, food and electronics applications.

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