Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Rating Increased to Strong Sell at Barclays

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) was upgraded by research analysts at Barclays to a “strong sell” rating in a report issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company set a $171.00 price objective on shares of Southern Copper and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Southern Copper from $117.50 to $127.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Scotiabank restated an “underperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective (up from $133.00) on shares of Southern Copper in a report on Friday, May 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and eight have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $145.14.

Southern Copper Stock Performance

Shares of Southern Copper stock opened at $179.68 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $147.18 billion, a PE ratio of 29.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 3.89 and a current ratio of 4.38. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $177.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.41. Southern Copper has a one year low of $88.73 and a one year high of $223.88.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.96 billion. Southern Copper had a net margin of 34.13% and a return on equity of 45.63%. Research analysts expect that Southern Copper will post 6.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.82, for a total value of $35,564.00. Following the sale, the director owned 1,807 shares in the company, valued at $321,320.74. This represents a 9.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 500 shares of company stock valued at $88,412 in the last 90 days. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern Copper

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SCCO. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern Copper in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Southern Copper in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. purchased a new stake in Southern Copper in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Southern Copper in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, United Community Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Copper during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 7.94% of the company’s stock.

About Southern Copper

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.