Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Shares of Southern Copper Co. (NYSE:SCCO) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $100.05, but opened at $102.50. Southern Copper shares last traded at $100.31, with a volume of 92,415 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SCCO has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Southern Copper from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $92.50 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Southern Copper from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $54.00 to $52.00 and set a “sector underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Southern Copper from $99.44 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.56.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 2.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $80.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.76, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $110.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.28.

Southern Copper Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a — dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were issued a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a yield of 2.1%. Southern Copper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.09%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern Copper

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Southern Copper by 172.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 223 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Southern Copper by 169.2% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 288 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern Copper during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Southern Copper during the 3rd quarter worth $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

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.