JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) Price Target to $93.00

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) had its price objective raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $79.00 to $93.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 17.72% from the stock’s previous close.

SQM has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research report on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $63.00 price target (up from $45.00) on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Rothschild & Co Redburn began coverage on Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a report on Friday, October 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $54.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup cut Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $51.00 to $74.00 in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $50.00 price target (down previously from $53.00) on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.68.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera stock traded up $1.47 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $79.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 428,522 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,553,013. The company has a market capitalization of $22.15 billion, a PE ratio of 43.17 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 1.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $66.70 and a 200 day moving average of $51.29. Sociedad Quimica y Minera has a 12 month low of $29.36 and a 12 month high of $83.60.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 18th. The basic materials company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.14 billion. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 12.12% and a return on equity of 9.79%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. Sociedad Quimica y Minera’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Sociedad Quimica y Minera will post -1.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sociedad Quimica y Minera

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,432,000. RWC Asset Management LLP increased its holdings in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 369.9% in the third quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 1,113,807 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $47,871,000 after purchasing an additional 876,754 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 81.9% in the third quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,911,668 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $82,163,000 after purchasing an additional 860,984 shares during the period. RWC Asset Advisors US LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 112.4% during the 3rd quarter. RWC Asset Advisors US LLC now owns 1,232,662 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $52,980,000 after buying an additional 652,257 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 62.4% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,676,392 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $72,051,000 after buying an additional 644,129 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 12.41% of the company’s stock.

About Sociedad Quimica y Minera

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA (NYSE: SQM) is a leading global producer of specialty chemicals and minerals headquartered in Santiago, Chile. The company focuses on the extraction and processing of key inputs for the agricultural, industrial and high‐tech sectors. Its core business activities include the mining of lithium, potassium and iodine, as well as the manufacture of value‐added products derived from these raw materials.

SQM’s product portfolio spans lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide used in electric vehicle batteries and energy storage systems; potassium chloride and potassium nitrate fertilizers designed for precision agriculture; and iodine and its derivatives for pharmaceutical, food and electronics applications.