Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Sociedad Quimica y Minera's stock price fell sharply, opening at $43.00 after a previous close of $45.48, with shares last trading at $42.62.
• Despite the recent downturn, analysts have mixed outlooks, with price targets varying from $45.00 to $55.00, indicating a consensus rating of "Hold".
• The company reported earnings of $0.31 EPS for the last quarter, missing estimates significantly, with a revenue decline of 19.4% year-over-year.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) shares gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $45.48, but opened at $43.00. Sociedad Quimica y Minera shares last traded at $42.62, with a volume of 636,807 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 30th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $36.50 to $43.50 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Itau BBA Securities started coverage on Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $45.08.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Stock Down 1.5%

The company has a fifty day moving average of $41.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.03. The company has a market cap of $11.98 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.93 and a current ratio of 2.92.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.08 billion. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 11.29% and a return on equity of 9.09%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.75 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post -1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sociedad Quimica y Minera

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the first quarter valued at about $309,000. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the first quarter valued at about $573,000. White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 15,879 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 4,834.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 15,296 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $608,000 after buying an additional 14,986 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional purchased a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the first quarter valued at about $74,000. 12.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.