Sociedad Quimica Y Minera de Chile S.A. ADR (SQM)

Sociedad Quimica (SQM) stock fell by 7.40% due to disappointing fourth-quarter of 2023 results, which fell short of analysts' estimates and weak outlook. Here are the key details:

• Q4 results: the company reported earnings of 71 cents per share for the fourth quarter of 2023, down from $4.03 in the year-ago quarter. This earnings per share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.22. The company also recorded revenues of $1,311.6 million for the quarter, down around 58% year over year, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,358 million. The decline in earnings and revenues was primarily attributed to lower average sales prices in the lithium business.
• Financials and Outlook: At the end of 2023, SQM's cash and cash equivalents were $1,041.4 million, down around 61% year over year, while long-term debt was $3,213.4 million, up around 34% year over year. Looking ahead, SQM anticipates another robust year of growth in the lithium market in 2024, with global demand expected to rise at least 20%. However, the company expects excess lithium and battery materials capacity to continue, putting pressure on lithium market prices. SQM expects average lithium prices to remain relatively stable throughout 2024, with modest sales volume growth expected, subject to market conditions.

Shares of Sociedad Quimica Y Minera de Chile S.A. ADR (SQM) dropped by 8.00% from $54.00 to $49.68 in the trading on Monday, December 04, 2023. The reason why SQM is down today is due to broader market movements.

• Market-Wide Impact: SQM's decline is part of a broader market trend, as stocks on Wall Street slipped. Investors were cautious ahead of key reports on the job market scheduled for the week, which could provide insights into the Federal Reserve's stance on interest rates.
• Market Performance: The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq composite all experienced declines, with the S&P 500 falling by 0.5%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average by 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite by 0.8%.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. Stock (SQM) dropped by 8.00% from $51.50 to $47.38 in the trading on Thursday November 16, 2023. The reasons why SQM stock down today is due to release of a lower-than-expected third-quarter revenue and earnings result. The company's lackluster performance was chiefly attributable to a significant decrease in average sales prices across its lithium and fertilizer operations.

• EPS for Q3 of $1.68 on revenue of $1.84 billion. Wall Street was looking for EPS of $2.11 on revenue of $1.9 billion, so the company fell short of both expectations.
• Gross margin was 40.9%, down from 55.2% in the year-ago period.
• The company ended the quarter with $1.19 billion in cash and cash equivalents and $2.48 billion in long-term debt.

Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (SQM) dropped by 4.62% from $51.09 to $48.73 in the trading on Monday October 30, 2023. The reason why SQM stock down today is due to concerns of declining near-term demand and oversupply in Lithium. It is attributed to several makers downgraded their forward guidance for the next quarter. ON Semiconductor, a key supplier of chips for automakers, issued downside guidance for Q4 revenues. Second, battery maker Panasonic cut its FY 2024 sales forecast.

Shares of Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (SQM) dropped by 6.75% from $59.45 to $55.44 in the trading on Wednesday, October 18, 2023. The reason why SQM stock down is due to a downgrade from BofA Securities, who shifted the rating from Neutral to Underperform and lowered the target price from $69 to $59. The downgrade came as BofA Securities reduced its 2023 and 2024 EBITDA estimates by 17% and 43%, respectively, in response to significant cuts in lithium price assumptions for 2023-2025 made by the BofA commodities team.