Southern Copper (NYSE: SCCO) reported earnings on Oct. 25. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended Sep. 30 (Q3), Southern Copper missed estimates on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

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

Margins dropped across the board.

Revenue details
 Southern Copper tallied revenue of $1.55 billion. The four analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ hoped for sales of $1.61 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 11% lower than the prior-year quarter's $1.75 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 five earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ averaged $0.60 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.26 for Q3 were 67% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.79 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 56.8%, 440 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 49.2%, 590 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 14.0%, 2,400 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $1.66 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.65.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $6.67 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.59.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 4,178 members out of 4,338 rating the stock outperform, and 160 members rating it underperform. Among 984 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 956 give Southern Copper a green thumbs-up, and 28 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 $36.21.

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