Insider Selling: Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Director Sells $19,500.00 in Stock

Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 100 shares of Southern Copper stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.00, for a total value of $19,500.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,903 shares in the company, valued at approximately $371,085. This trade represents a 4.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, August 5th, Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 200 shares of Southern Copper stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $199.15, for a total value of $39,830.00.
• On Friday, July 24th, Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 100 shares of Southern Copper stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.00, for a total value of $17,900.00.
• On Friday, June 5th, Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 4 shares of Southern Copper stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.00, for a total value of $724.00.
• On Tuesday, June 2nd, Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 100 shares of Southern Copper stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $20,000.00.
• On Thursday, May 21st, Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 200 shares of Southern Copper stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total value of $35,564.00.
• On Friday, May 15th, Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 100 shares of Southern Copper stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.20, for a total value of $17,820.00.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SCCO opened at $199.38 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $181.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $184.71. The company has a current ratio of 5.06, a quick ratio of 3.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.15, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.11. Southern Copper Corporation has a one year low of $92.57 and a one year high of $223.88.

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

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.37 billion. Southern Copper had a net margin of 35.87% and a return on equity of 49.04%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 40.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Southern Copper Corporation will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 11th. This is a positive change from Southern Copper’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Southern Copper’s payout ratio is 58.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on SCCO shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southern Copper from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Southern Copper from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $140.00 price objective (up from $135.00) on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Monday, June 15th. Barclays set a $166.00 price objective on Southern Copper and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and seven have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $148.60.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern Copper

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Southern Copper during the 2nd quarter valued at about $510,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Southern Copper during the second quarter worth about $47,000. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. bought a new stake in Southern Copper during the second quarter worth about $308,000. NINE MASTS CAPITAL Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the second quarter worth approximately $514,000. Finally, Focused Alpha LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the second quarter worth approximately $317,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Southern Copper Company 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.