Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $66.7778.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Methanex from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Methanex from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Methanex from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Methanex from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st.

Methanex Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:MEOH opened at $52.79 on Tuesday. Methanex has a one year low of $32.00 and a one year high of $66.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $4.08 billion, a PE ratio of -107.73 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.36.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.08). Methanex had a negative net margin of 1.25% and a positive return on equity of 2.96%. The company had revenue of $957.42 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $964.76 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Methanex will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.185 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -151.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Methanex

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Methanex by 546.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 269,374 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $10,710,000 after purchasing an additional 227,723 shares during the period. Semanteon Capital Management LP bought a new position in Methanex during the third quarter valued at about $419,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Methanex by 249.8% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,432,483 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $56,939,000 after buying an additional 1,022,987 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Methanex by 87.1% during the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 689,461 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,417,000 after buying an additional 320,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management bought a new stake in Methanex in the fourth quarter worth about $375,000. 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).