Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Buys 22,670 Shares of Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) by 7.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 347,200 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 22,670 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings in Southern Copper were worth $59,739,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SCCO. Savvy Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,434,000. Oak Harvest Investment Services bought a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,650,000. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its position in Southern Copper by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 192,523 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,126,000 after purchasing an additional 33,638 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Southern Copper by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 74,484 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,687,000 after buying an additional 10,360 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of Southern Copper in the 4th quarter worth about $5,460,000. 7.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Copper Trading Down 0.0%

SCCO opened at $179.20 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 4.38 and a quick ratio of 3.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $148.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $180.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $183.75. Southern Copper Corporation has a one year low of $88.73 and a one year high of $223.88.

Southern Copper shares are scheduled to split on the morning of Tuesday, August 11th. The 1.012-1 split was recently announced. The newly minted shares will be payable to shareholders after the closing bell on Monday, August 10th.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.06. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 50.74% and a net margin of 35.87%.The firm had revenue of $4.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.37 billion. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 40.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be paid a $1.10 dividend. This is an increase from Southern Copper’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 11th. Southern Copper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $146.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Zacks Research raised Southern Copper from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Southern Copper from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Southern Copper from $171.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and seven have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern Copper presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $148.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total value of $35,564.00. Following the sale, the director owned 1,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $321,320.74. This trade represents a 9.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 404 shares of company stock valued at $74,108. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Southern Copper Profile

Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE: SCCO) is a large, integrated copper producer whose operations span the full value chain from exploration and mining to smelting, refining and the sale of copper and other metal products. The company produces a range of copper products including copper concentrate and refined cathodes, and recovers valuable byproducts such as molybdenum, silver and zinc. Southern Copper concentrates on high-volume, long-life assets designed to support steady production and processing capabilities.

Southern Copper’s operations are concentrated in Peru and Mexico, where it owns and operates multiple large-scale mining and processing facilities.