Sociedad Quimica Y Minera De Chile S.A. (SQM) produces and distributes specialty plant nutrients, iodine and its derivatives, lithium and its derivatives, potassium chloride and sulfate, industrial chemicals, and other products and services, explains notes Louis Navellier, editor of Navellier Growth.
SQM is the second largest lithium producer in the world. The company also mines potassium and iodine, which is used for fertilizer and medical applications, respectively.
Lithium mining requires over 20 evaporation ponds and almost two years to extract for ancient seabeds. As a result, it is very hard to boost lithium production without setting up new facilities that require extensive environment permits.
One of the problems with evaporation ponds is that the toxic metals being extracted can be deadly to migrating birds, which is why there is only one lithium mine in Nevada, despite lots of dried up inland seas in California, Nevada and Utah that contain lithium.
As a result, Sociedad Quimica Y Minera De Chile is poised to dominate lithium mining for the foreseeable future and profit from the boom in electric vehicles.
The company announced that its third quarter sales rose 347.1% to $2.958 billion compared to $661.6 million in the same quarter a year ago. During the same period, SQM’s earnings surged 940.5% to $1.1 billion or $3.85 per share compared to $106.1 million or 37 cents per share.
The analyst community was expecting earnings of $3.10 per share, so the company posted a 24.2% earnings surprise. The stock has an 8.44% annual dividend yield and is a good buy.
