Outfitter Financial LLC Boosts Position in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM)

Outfitter Financial LLC increased its holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM) by 14.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,905 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,995 shares during the quarter. Outfitter Financial LLC’s holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile were worth $958,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 29.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 16,504 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $985,000 after purchasing an additional 3,742 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 5.9% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 91,073 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,434,000 after buying an additional 5,108 shares during the period. Advisor Partners II LLC boosted its position in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 4,198 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $250,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 6.8% during the 3rd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 17,905 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,068,000 after acquiring an additional 1,140 shares during the period. Finally, Paradiem LLC raised its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 20.7% in the 3rd quarter. Paradiem LLC now owns 15,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $922,000 after acquiring an additional 2,655 shares in the last quarter. 12.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Trading Down 3.0 %

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile stock traded down $1.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $46.83. 508,230 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,385,546. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. has a 52-week low of $38.50 and a 52-week high of $81.50. The company has a market capitalization of $13.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.85 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 2.33 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.93.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by ($0.51). Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile had a return on equity of 39.90% and a net margin of 26.95%. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.03 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.2134 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $0.85 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.82%. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SQM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $48.00 to $42.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $80.00 to $70.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $64.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.18.

About Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA produces and distributes specialty plant nutrients, iodine derivatives, lithium derivatives, potassium chloride and sulfate, industrial chemicals, and other products and services. The company offers specialty plant nutrients, including potassium nitrate, sodium nitrate, sodium potassium nitrate, specialty blends, and other specialty fertilizers.