Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO Stock Position Raised by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC increased its position in Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) by 3.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 67,140 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,102 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Southern Copper were worth $6,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the first quarter worth $40,338,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Southern Copper during the 1st quarter worth about $34,086,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position 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 acquiring an additional 322,935 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in Southern Copper during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,739,000. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Southern Copper in the 1st quarter valued at about $15,382,000. 7.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SCCO has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Southern Copper from $121.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $92.00 to $114.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Citigroup reissued a “sell” rating and set a $108.00 target price (up previously from $89.10) on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Southern Copper from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $155.00 price objective on Southern Copper and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $117.94.

Southern Copper Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCCO opened at $136.89 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $111.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50-day moving average of $123.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $105.64. Southern Copper Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $74.84 and a fifty-two week high of $144.81. 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 (NYSE:SCCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The basic materials company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.09. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 39.62% and a net margin of 30.98%.The business had revenue of $3.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Copper Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. Southern Copper’s payout ratio is presently 75.47%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.35, for a total value of $27,870.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,706.55. This trade represents a 10.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 962 shares of company stock worth $118,232. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.