Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) Receives Consensus Rating of "Reduce" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Southern Copper Corporation has received a consensus rating of "Reduce" from twelve research firms, with three analysts recommending a sell and seven recommending a hold.
• The company's current average price target is $110.78, with price targets ranging from $92.00 to $155.00 issued by various analysts.
• Southern Copper recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.90 per share, representing a 2.8% dividend yield, with a dividend payout ratio of 70.02%.

Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Reduce" from the twelve research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have issued a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $110.7778.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on SCCO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $79.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $155.00 price target on shares of Southern Copper and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Citigroup reissued a "sell" rating and set a $108.00 price objective (up from $89.10) on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $132.00 target price on Southern Copper and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th.

Southern Copper Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of SCCO stock opened at $129.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $104.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 4.51, a current ratio of 5.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Southern Copper has a fifty-two week low of $74.84 and a fifty-two week high of $136.49. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.84.

Southern Copper Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 12th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Southern Copper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southern Copper news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 414 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total value of $41,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $232,700. This represents a 15.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,228 shares of company stock valued at $123,102. Insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern Copper

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 35.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 906 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Southern Copper by 42.3% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,773 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,381,000 after acquiring an additional 4,391 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Southern Copper in the 1st quarter valued at $337,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 16,408 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,533,000 after purchasing an additional 645 shares during the period. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 6.3% during the first quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,105 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.94% of the company's stock.

About Southern Copper

Southern Copper Corporation engages in mining, exploring, smelting, and refining copper and other minerals in Peru, Mexico, Argentina, Ecuador, and Chile. The company is involved in the mining, milling, and flotation of copper ore to produce copper and molybdenum concentrates; smelting of copper concentrates to produce blister and anode copper; refining of anode copper to produce copper cathodes; production of molybdenum concentrate and sulfuric acid; production of refined silver, gold, and other materials; and mining and processing of zinc, copper, molybdenum, silver, gold, and lead.

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