Argos Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $460,000 in Southern Copper Corporation $SCCO

Argos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern Copper Corporation (NYSE:SCCO) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 3,204 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $460,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Southern Copper by 47.6% during the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,780 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $686,000 after buying an additional 1,542 shares in the last quarter. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in Southern Copper during the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,460,000. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lifted its stake in Southern Copper by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 10,707 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,536,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Southern Copper by 48.9% during the fourth quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,329 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,422 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Southern Copper by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC now owns 4,841 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $695,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. 7.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Copper Stock Up 3.4%

Southern Copper stock opened at $191.62 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $156.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.07. Southern Copper Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $88.54 and a fifty-two week high of $223.88. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $180.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.15.

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.96 billion. Southern Copper had a return on equity of 45.63% and a net margin of 34.13%. Analysts predict that Southern Copper Corporation will post 6.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Copper Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. Southern Copper’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.12%.

Insider Activity at Southern Copper

In other news, Director Bonilla Luis Miguel Palomino sold 193 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.60, for a total value of $33,697.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,707 shares in the company, valued at $298,042.20. This trade represents a 10.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SCCO shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Southern Copper from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern Copper in a research note on Friday, March 27th. UBS Group cut their price target on Southern Copper from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Bank of America cut Southern Copper from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $162.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Southern Copper from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and seven have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $144.25.

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.