At US$49.30, Is It Time To Put Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM) On Your Watch List?

Let's talk about the popular Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE:SQM). The company's shares saw significant share price movement during recent months on the NYSE, rising to highs of US$61.91 and falling to the lows of US$46.87. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile's current trading price of US$49.30 reflective of the actual value of the large-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

View our latest analysis for Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile

Is Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile Still Cheap?

The stock seems fairly valued at the moment according to our valuation model. It’s trading around 1.8% below our intrinsic value, which means if you buy Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile today, you’d be paying a fair price for it. And if you believe that the stock is really worth $50.19, then there isn’t much room for the share price grow beyond what it’s currently trading. Although, there may be an opportunity to buy in the future. This is because Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile’s beta (a measure of share price volatility) is high, meaning its price movements will be exaggerated relative to the rest of the market. If the market is bearish, the company’s shares will likely fall by more than the rest of the market, providing a prime buying opportunity.

What kind of growth will Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile generate?

Future outlook is an important aspect when you’re looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Although value investors would argue that it’s the intrinsic value relative to the price that matter the most, a more compelling investment thesis would be high growth potential at a cheap price. However, with an extremely negative double-digit change in profit expected over the next couple of years, near-term growth is certainly not a driver of a buy decision. It seems like high uncertainty is on the cards for Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile, at least in the near future.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? SQM seems fairly priced right now, but given the uncertainty from negative returns in the future, this could be the right time to de-risk your portfolio. Is your current exposure to the stock beneficial for your total portfolio? And is the opportunity cost of holding a negative-outlook stock too high? Before you make a decision on the stock, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on SQM for a while, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. The price seems to be trading at fair value, which means there’s less benefit from mispricing. In addition to this, the negative growth outlook increases the risk of holding the stock. However, there are also other important factors we haven’t considered today, which can help gel your views on SQM should the price fluctuate below its true value.

With this in mind, we wouldn't consider investing in a stock unless we had a thorough understanding of the risks. When we did our research, we found 3 warning signs for Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (2 are a bit concerning!) that we believe deserve your full attention.

If you are no longer interested in Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.