Rhumbline Advisers Sells 6,534 Shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM)

Rhumbline Advisers cut its stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM) by 42.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,733 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 6,534 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile were worth $356,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SQM. Prudential PLC bought a new position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile during the 4th quarter worth about $30,572,000. Robeco Schweiz AG lifted its holdings in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 23.4% during the 1st quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 1,407,650 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $69,200,000 after acquiring an additional 267,005 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 41.6% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 899,646 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $36,661,000 after acquiring an additional 264,324 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,144,179 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $105,407,000 after purchasing an additional 165,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile during the 4th quarter valued at about $8,076,000. 12.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Trading Up 1.0 %

SQM opened at $41.67 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 stock has a market capitalization of $11.90 billion, a PE ratio of 29.98 and a beta of 1.02. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. has a 1-year low of $32.24 and a 1-year high of $64.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $37.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.89.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target 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. Berenberg Bank assumed coverage on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. They set a “hold” rating and a $35.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from $45.00 to $36.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 18th. 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.06.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Profile

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.