CluenexSouthern Copper SCCO
Southern Copper scores excellent on business quality (8.4 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Southern Copper does
Southern Copper mines, smelts, and refines copper and other minerals, selling to industrial customers globally. The business relies on massive ore reserves in Peru and Mexico to generate steady raw material sales.
- What it does best
Southern Copper extracts ore cheaper than almost anyone else, driving a gross margin of 64.5% that dwarfs peer FCX at 27.1%. This advantage stems from giant, high-grade deposits that require less processing cost per pound, a geological edge rivals cannot easily copy.
- The main risk
Geopolitical and trade tensions tied to U.S.-China friction threaten export channels and regional operations in Latin America. Any escalation in trade barriers directly impacts the volume of raw materials it can ship to key overseas buyers.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margin sits at 56.9% with an FCF margin near the top decile of its sector. This elite profitability expands naturally as higher metal prices drop straight to the bottom line.
Its moat rests on irreplaceable mineral assets that lock in long-term supply agreements. Sitting in the top decile for gross margin, its low-cost extraction base protects it from smaller rivals.
Revenue growth hit 17.4%, accelerating past prior years as output expands and commodity pricing remains favorable across core mining operations.
With an interest coverage ratio of 24.9x, debt servicing costs are minimal. Free cash flow reached $5.1B, showing a significantly strengthening balance sheet.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
1 sold $225K outside pre-planned sales.
Our sealed record on SCCO
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Southern Copper scores excellent on the Cluenex quality check (8.4 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is strong, moat strong, growth fast and financial health strong.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: 1 sold $225K outside pre-planned sales.
Oct 26, 2026.
See SCCO today
- Today's verdict on SCCO, and why
- Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
- The exact price that would change the verdict
- Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
Cite this page: Cluenex, “Southern Copper (SCCO)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/scco/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.