Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Releases Earnings Results

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) issued its earnings results on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.02 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. Southern Copper had a net margin of 27.67% and a return on equity of 37.11%.

Southern Copper Price Performance

Shares of SCCO stock traded up $1.98 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $94.07. 405,328 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,115,673. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $95.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $102.18. The firm has a market cap of $73.89 billion, a PE ratio of 24.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 2.77 and a quick ratio of 2.31. Southern Copper has a 1-year low of $77.42 and a 1-year high of $129.79.

Southern Copper Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 11th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a positive change from Southern Copper’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 11th. Southern Copper’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Southern Copper from $54.00 to $52.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Southern Copper from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $92.50 price target for the company in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Southern Copper from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $106.30 to $102.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern Copper currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $94.81.

Southern Copper Company 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.