Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Hits New 12-Month Low After Analyst Downgrade

Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $66.00 to $53.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Methanex traded as low as $26.17 and last traded at $27.39, with a volume of 722022 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.72.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on MEOH. Raymond James lifted their target price on Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Methanex in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. CIBC dropped their price target on shares of Methanex from $63.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperformer” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Methanex from $57.00 to $41.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Methanex has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.63.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Methanex

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Methanex in the third quarter worth $40,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in Methanex by 39.7% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,015 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 573 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Methanex during the 4th quarter worth about $106,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Methanex in the 4th quarter valued at about $129,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Methanex by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,845 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $142,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the period. 73.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Methanex Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $42.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.93. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.86 and a beta of 1.06.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.30. Methanex had a net margin of 4.41% and a return on equity of 10.97%. On average, analysts forecast that Methanex Co. will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a $0.185 dividend. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.03%.

Methanex Company Profile

Methanex Corporation produces and supplies methanol in China, Europe, the United States, South America, South Korea, Canada, and Asia. The company also purchases methanol produced by others under methanol offtake contracts and on the spot market. In addition, it owns and leases storage and terminal facilities.