Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Hits New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Southern Copper shares reached a new 52-week high of $123.50, showing strong trading activity with over 105,000 shares exchanged.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.01, representing a dividend yield of 3.3% and a payout ratio of 70.02%.
• Analyst ratings for Southern Copper are mixed, with Goldman Sachs issuing a "sell" rating and a target of $89, while others like UBS maintain a "buy" stance.

Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $123.50 and last traded at $123.38, with a volume of 105851 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $121.36.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on SCCO. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Southern Copper and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $99.00 price objective (up previously from $86.00) on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Itau BBA Securities raised shares of Southern Copper from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Southern Copper from $79.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $93.67.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $98.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50-day moving average of $101.42 and a 200-day moving average of $96.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 5.27 and a quick ratio of 4.51.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a $1.01 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This is an increase from Southern Copper's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $4.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Southern Copper's dividend payout ratio is presently 70.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern Copper

In related news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 414 shares of Southern Copper stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total value of $41,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,327 shares in the company, valued at $232,700. The trade was a 15.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold 1,228 shares of company stock valued at $123,102 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern Copper

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of SCCO. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 12,538.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 84,675 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $7,914,000 after acquiring an additional 84,005 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Southern Copper by 8.0% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,601 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $337,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in Southern Copper by 0.4% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 180,936 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $16,911,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Southern Copper by 15.8% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 14,061 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,314,000 after buying an additional 1,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Veracity Capital LLC boosted its position in Southern Copper by 14.3% in the first quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 3,214 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.94% of the company's stock.

Southern Copper Company Profile

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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