Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Hits New 12-Month Low - Here's Why

Southern Copper Co. (NYSE:SCCO - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $87.11 and last traded at $89.49, with a volume of 1918462 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.87.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $120.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $84.00 to $83.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. StockNews.com cut Southern Copper from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Southern Copper from $52.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "sector underperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised Southern Copper from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $91.50.

Southern Copper Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.77, a quick ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.40. The firm has a market cap of $71.84 billion, a PE ratio of 20.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.05.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.14. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 40.27% and a net margin of 29.53%. The firm had revenue of $3.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.05 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Southern Copper Co. will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Copper Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. Southern Copper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.27%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern Copper

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 108,753 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $9,969,000 after purchasing an additional 14,391 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in Southern Copper by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 137,019 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $12,487,000 after buying an additional 24,933 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Southern Copper during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $8,420,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Southern Copper by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 237,437 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $21,638,000 after acquiring an additional 4,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 4th quarter worth approximately $308,000. 7.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.