UPDATE: Morgan Stanley Reiterates on Southern Copper After 4Q13 Comes In Below Expectations

In a report published Friday, Morgan Stanley analyst Carlos De Alba reiterated an Equal-Weight rating on Southern Copper (NYSE: SCCO), but removed the $32.90 price target.

In the report, Morgan Stanley noted, “EBITDA of $726M, up 6% Q/Q and down 19% Y/Y, came in 3% below our estimate of $751M – and the consensus of $732M – on the back of higher-than-expected cash costs and expenses. Copper output of 170k tonnes was 5% above our model. EPS of $0.48, up 18% Q/Q and down 23% Y/Y, came in only 2% below our estimate, but beat consensus by 4%...We remain Equal-weight on SCCO. While the stock's risk-reward proposition has improved, we prefer GMexico to play copper in Latin America.”

Southern Copper closed on Thursday at $28.44.