Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC Buys New Holdings in Southern Copper Co. (NYSE:SCCO)

Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Southern Copper Co. (NYSE:SCCO) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 2,750 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $293,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in Southern Copper in the 1st quarter valued at $340,373,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Southern Copper in the 4th quarter valued at $71,802,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Southern Copper by 54.6% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,541,396 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $164,190,000 after buying an additional 544,312 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern Copper during the 1st quarter worth $27,163,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in shares of Southern Copper by 182.3% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 278,119 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,625,000 after purchasing an additional 179,590 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

Southern Copper Trading Up 1.0 %

SCCO traded up $1.08 on Friday, reaching $105.42. 731,692 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,021,754. The company’s 50 day moving average is $111.95 and its 200-day moving average is $102.46. The company has a market cap of $82.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.04, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.19. Southern Copper Co. has a twelve month low of $68.93 and a twelve month high of $129.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a current ratio of 3.31.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $2.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Southern Copper had a net margin of 24.20% and a return on equity of 30.44%. Equities analysts predict that Southern Copper Co. will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Copper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 26th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. Southern Copper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern Copper

In other Southern Copper news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $35,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,614 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $546,759. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Southern Copper news, Director PALOMINO BONILLA LUIS MIGUEL sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.30, for a total value of $425,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $261,916.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $35,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,614 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $546,759. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,000 shares of company stock valued at $472,430 over the last 90 days. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Southern Copper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Friday, July 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $81.70 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. HSBC cut shares of Southern Copper from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, CICC Research assumed coverage on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.57.

About Southern Copper

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.