Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Southern Copper's stock gapped up significantly prior to trading, opening at $116.19 after closing at $110.26, with the last traded price at $118.90.
• The company recently announced a dividend increase to $1.01 per share, up from $0.62, representing an annualized yield of 3.3%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on SCCO, with a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a price target average of $93.67 amidst differing views from major firms like Goldman Sachs and UBS Group.

Shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $110.26, but opened at $116.19. Southern Copper shares last traded at $118.90, with a volume of 659,157 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on SCCO. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $89.00 price objective on Southern Copper and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $99.00 price target (up from $86.00) on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective 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. Finally, Itau BBA Securities upgraded shares of Southern Copper from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $93.67.

Southern Copper Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 4.51 and a current ratio of 5.27. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $99.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.42. The company has a market capitalization of $97.32 billion, a PE ratio of 26.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.99.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $1.01 per share. This is an increase from Southern Copper's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Southern Copper's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.02%.

Insider Transactions at Southern Copper

In related news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 414 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $41,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,327 shares in the company, valued at $232,700. The trade was a 15.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold a total of 1,228 shares of company stock valued at $123,102 in the last 90 days. 0.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern Copper

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCCO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the second quarter valued at $57,901,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Southern Copper in the 4th quarter worth about $40,226,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Southern Copper in the 1st quarter valued at $40,338,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Southern Copper during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,086,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Southern Copper by 26.3% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,551,878 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $145,039,000 after purchasing an additional 322,935 shares during the last quarter. 7.94% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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