Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $49.90.

MEOH has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Methanex from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised Methanex from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Methanex in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on shares of Methanex from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered shares of Methanex from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $46.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Friday, February 6th.

Methanex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MEOH opened at $51.75 on Friday. Methanex has a 12-month low of $25.46 and a 12-month high of $59.09. The company has a current ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $4.00 billion, a PE ratio of 45.80 and a beta of 0.65. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.48.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.14) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.81 by ($0.95). The company had revenue of $968.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Methanex had a return on equity of 5.35% and a net margin of 2.21%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Methanex will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.185 per share. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.49%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Methanex

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Methanex during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Methanex by 1,244.4% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,331 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,232 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Methanex by 336.2% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,784 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 1,375 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Methanex by 131.5% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,482 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $99,000 after buying an additional 1,410 shares during the period. Finally, AXA S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Methanex during the second quarter valued at $166,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.49% of the company’s stock.

About Methanex

Methanex Corporation is a Vancouver, Canada–based company and one of the world’s largest producers and suppliers of methanol. The company manufactures methanol, a key feedstock for a wide range of chemical products and industrial applications. Methanex markets its product to customers in energy, plastics, paints and coatings, and various chemical sectors, positioning the company as a critical link in the global supply chain for basic chemicals.

The company’s core product, methanol, serves as a building block for downstream chemicals such as formaldehyde, acetic acid and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).