Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eight analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $41.14.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SQM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $44.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $55.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their target price on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 30th.

Institutional Trading of Sociedad Quimica y Minera

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SQM. Soros Fund Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the 4th quarter worth $5,619,000. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,071,339 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $38,954,000 after purchasing an additional 18,748 shares in the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC bought a new stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the fourth quarter valued at about $642,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 121.9% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 61,519 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,236,000 after purchasing an additional 33,797 shares in the last quarter. Finally, White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 86.5% during 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 purchasing an additional 15,879 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 12.41% of the company’s stock.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Price Performance

SQM opened at $38.93 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $11.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.45 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $34.43 and a 200 day moving average of $37.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.96 and a current ratio of 2.88. Sociedad Quimica y Minera has a fifty-two week low of $29.36 and a fifty-two week high of $45.89.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by ($0.15). Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 13.45% and a return on equity of 11.71%. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($3.04) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Sociedad Quimica y Minera will post -1.31 EPS for the current year.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Company Profile

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.