Vontobel Holding Ltd. Cuts Stock Position in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM) by 3.7% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 40,137 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,554 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile were worth $1,673,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 40.1% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 790 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 0.3% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 95,111 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $3,876,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 3.7% in the first quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 8,216 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 3.2% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,037 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $531,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,482 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. 12.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Stock Up 1.3 %

SQM stock opened at $39.10 on Friday. Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. has a one year low of $32.24 and a one year high of $64.62. The firm has a market cap of $11.17 billion, a PE ratio of 28.13 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $38.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 2.19.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The basic materials company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 prior year, the firm earned $2.03 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. will post -0.88 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on SQM. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of 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. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective 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 research note on Monday, August 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $55.00 to $44.00 in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Berenberg Bank began coverage on Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $35.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.69.

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Profile

Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile SA operates as a mining company worldwide. The company offers specialty plant nutrients, including sodium potassium nitrate, specialty blends, and other specialty fertilizers under Ultrasol, Qrop, Speedfol, Allganic, Ultrasoline, ProP, and Prohydric brands. It also provides iodine and its derivatives for use in medical, agricultural, industrial, and human and animal nutrition products comprising x-ray contrast media, biocides, antiseptics and disinfectants, pharmaceutical intermediates, polarizing films for LCD and LED screens, chemicals, organic compounds, and pigments, as well as added to edible salt to prevent iodine deficiency disorders.