Brokerages Set Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) PT at $61.88

Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $62.25.

MEOH has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on Methanex from $54.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Methanex from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group raised their price target on Methanex from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Methanex

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Methanex by 4,776.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 900,284 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,960,000 after purchasing an additional 881,823 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Methanex in the fourth quarter valued at $14,327,000. Highland Peak Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Methanex during the 4th quarter worth $10,400,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Methanex by 1,495.7% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 138,827 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,739,000 after buying an additional 130,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in Methanex by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,182,168 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,022,000 after acquiring an additional 106,848 shares during the last quarter. 73.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Methanex Price Performance

Methanex stock opened at $49.83 on Friday. Methanex has a 52-week low of $36.13 and a 52-week high of $56.43. The company’s 50 day moving average is $48.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.94. 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 cap of $3.36 billion, a PE ratio of 21.57 and a beta of 1.36.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.30. Methanex had a return on equity of 10.97% and a net margin of 4.41%. On average, research analysts expect that Methanex will post 4.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.185 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. Methanex’s payout ratio is currently 32.03%.

About Methanex

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.