Analysts Set Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM) Price Target at $50.06

Shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $48.69.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $47.00 to $38.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $45.00 to $36.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $35.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $62.80 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Stock Down 3.4 %

NYSE SQM opened at $42.43 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $12.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 385.73 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50 day moving average of $38.24 and a 200-day moving average of $42.33. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile has a 1-year low of $32.24 and a 1-year high of $64.62.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The basic materials company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.24). Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile had a net margin of 0.48% and a return on equity of 23.15%. The company had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile will post -0.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Creative Planning raised its holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 63.8% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 18,516 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $772,000 after purchasing an additional 7,209 shares during the last quarter. Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc raised its stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 5.9% during the third quarter. Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc now owns 31,857 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after buying an additional 1,765 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 47.1% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,133 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 683 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 11,020 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $449,000 after acquiring an additional 591 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,249 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 12.41% 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.