Renaissance Technologies LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

Renaissance Technologies LLC lowered its position in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) by 43.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,065 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Southern Copper were worth $694,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SCCO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Southern Copper during the 4th quarter worth about $97,645,000. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new position in shares of Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at about $81,039,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 4th quarter worth about $46,560,000. USS Investment Management Ltd raised its position in shares of Southern Copper by 904.8% during the 4th quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 301,655 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $43,272,000 after acquiring an additional 271,634 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in Southern Copper during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,095,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Southern Copper Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCCO opened at $184.42 on Monday. Southern Copper Corporation has a one year low of $92.57 and a one year high of $223.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.96, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $179.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $182.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 4.56 and a current ratio of 5.06.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $4.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.37 billion. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 49.04% and a net margin of 35.87%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 40.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 7.61 EPS for the current year.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. 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 64.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern Copper

In other Southern Copper news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 202 shares of Southern Copper stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $196.79, for a total value of $39,751.28. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,723 shares in the company, valued at approximately $339,066.65. This trade represents a 10.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 711 shares of company stock valued at $133,247. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SCCO. Barclays set a $164.03 price target on Southern Copper and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $125.49 to $129.94 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. UBS Group restated a “sell” rating and set a $158.10 price objective (up from $143.28) on shares of Southern Copper in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Southern Copper from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Southern Copper from $168.97 to $169.96 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and seven have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $146.84.

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.