1,006,637 Shares in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. $SQM Acquired by Castle Hook Partners LP

Castle Hook Partners LP bought a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (NYSE:SQM) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,006,637 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $69,257,000. Sociedad Quimica y Minera accounts for about 0.3% of Castle Hook Partners LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the 4th quarter valued at $26,973,000. Seldon Capital LP boosted its stake in Sociedad Quimica y Minera by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Seldon Capital LP now owns 220,657 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $15,181,000 after purchasing an additional 4,099 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Sociedad Quimica y Minera during the 4th quarter valued at $224,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the fourth quarter valued at $212,000. Finally, Laird Norton Wetherby Trust Company LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in the fourth quarter valued at $842,000. 12.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Stock Down 0.0%

SQM stock opened at $83.07 on Thursday. Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. has a twelve month low of $31.90 and a twelve month high of $98.00. The company has a market cap of $23.73 billion, a PE ratio of 29.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $84.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.64. The company has a quick ratio of 2.01, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera (NYSE:SQM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, May 16th. The basic materials company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter. Sociedad Quimica y Minera had a net margin of 15.38% and a return on equity of 11.99%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. will post 7.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were given a $1.0295 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Sociedad Quimica y Minera’s payout ratio is 92.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SQM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Sociedad Quimica y Minera from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $94.00 to $100.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sociedad Quimica y Minera from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Sociedad Quimica y Minera from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $75.50.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera Profile

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA (NYSE: SQM) is a leading global producer of specialty chemicals and minerals headquartered in Santiago, Chile. The company focuses on the extraction and processing of key inputs for the agricultural, industrial and high‐tech sectors. Its core business activities include the mining of lithium, potassium and iodine, as well as the manufacture of value‐added products derived from these raw materials.

SQM’s product portfolio spans lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide used in electric vehicle batteries and energy storage systems; potassium chloride and potassium nitrate fertilizers designed for precision agriculture; and iodine and its derivatives for pharmaceutical, food and electronics applications.