Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The basic materials company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.52 by ($0.84), MarketWatch Earnings reports. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile had a return on equity of 71.64% and a net margin of 34.41%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.85 earnings per share.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile stock opened at $48.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 1.06. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile has a 12-month low of $44.86 and a 12-month high of $101.73. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $64.58.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 1st were issued a dividend of $0.6094 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.05%. This is an increase from Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 2nd. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SQM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $84.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 18th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile in a research note on Tuesday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $93.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.39.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 1.8% in the first quarter. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,123 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $610,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 7.6% in the second quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 2,668 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $223,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,930 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $154,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. Sprott Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Sprott Inc. now owns 16,691 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,333,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Finally, Fortis Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Institutional investors own 14.94% of the company’s stock.

About Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA produces and distributes specialty plant nutrients, iodine derivatives, lithium derivatives, potassium chloride and sulfate, industrial chemicals, and other products and services. The company offers specialty plant nutrients, including potassium nitrate, sodium nitrate, sodium potassium nitrate, specialty blends, and other specialty fertilizers.