Handelsbanken Fonder AB Grows Stock Position in Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) by 54.2% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 122,262 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,956 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Southern Copper were worth $12,369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Saturna Capital Corp boosted its position in Southern Copper by 1.0% in the second quarter. Saturna Capital Corp now owns 44,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,522,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 55.7% during the 2nd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,945 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Copper in the second quarter worth about $213,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Southern Copper by 1,148.2% during the second quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 83,690 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,467,000 after acquiring an additional 76,985 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. acquired a new position in Southern Copper in the second quarter valued at approximately $274,000. 7.94% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.35, for a total transaction of $27,870.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,713 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,706.55. The trade was a 10.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 962 shares of company stock worth $118,232 over the last 90 days. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Southern Copper Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of NYSE:SCCO opened at $123.35 on Monday. Southern Copper Corporation has a 52 week low of $74.84 and a 52 week high of $144.81. The company’s 50 day moving average is $127.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.51. The company has a market cap of $100.18 billion, a PE ratio of 25.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 5.27, a quick ratio of 4.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The basic materials company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.09. Southern Copper had a net margin of 30.98% and a return on equity of 39.62%. The firm had revenue of $3.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Equities analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 4.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Copper Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. Southern Copper’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SCCO. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup reissued a “sell” rating and set a $108.00 price objective (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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Southern Copper from $92.00 to $114.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $155.00 price target on Southern Copper and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.94.

Southern Copper 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.