Southern Copper Hits Estimates, But GAAP Results Lag Last Year's

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Southern Copper (NYS: SCCO) reported earnings on Feb. 1. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Southern Copper met expectations on revenues and met expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue contracted slightly and GAAP earnings per share dropped.


Gross margins dropped, operating margins dropped, net margins were steady.

Revenue details
 Southern Copper reported revenue of $1.65 billion. The six analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ expected sales of $1.64 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 1.1% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.67 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at $0.63. The six earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.63 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.63 for Q4 were 1.6% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.64 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 57.1%, 380 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 49.2%, 480 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 32.2%, about the same as the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $1.65 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.62.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $6.89 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.62.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 4,150 members out of 4,315 rating the stock outperform, and 165 members rating it underperform. Among 1,005 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 974 give Southern Copper a green thumbs-up, and 31 give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Southern Copper is hold, with an average price target of $38.08.

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The article Southern Copper Hits Estimates, But GAAP Results Lag Last Year's originally appeared on Fool.com.

Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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