Ballentine Partners LLC Makes New $248,000 Investment in Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX)

Ballentine Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 2,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $248,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FMX. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,269,083 shares of the company's stock worth $450,454,000 after purchasing an additional 274,467 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 4,228,299 shares of the company's stock worth $360,716,000 after purchasing an additional 717,666 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,238,177 shares of the company's stock worth $276,832,000 after purchasing an additional 205,981 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 540.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,147,544 shares of the company's stock worth $269,084,000 after purchasing an additional 2,655,962 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 2,158,614 shares of the company's stock worth $184,540,000 after purchasing an additional 437,699 shares during the period. 61.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE FMX traded up $1.04 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $100.35. 2,374,594 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 601,038. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.31. Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. has a twelve month low of $81.08 and a twelve month high of $119.18. The company has a market cap of $35.90 billion, a PE ratio of 22.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.65. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $103.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.11.

Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.07). Fomento Economico Mexicano had a return on equity of 7.86% and a net margin of 3.98%. The business had revenue of $9.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $194.75 billion. Research analysts predict that Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a -- dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $1.3625 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 17th. This is a positive change from Fomento Economico Mexicano's previous -- dividend of $0.73. Fomento Economico Mexicano's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Itau BBA Securities upgraded Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen cut Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Fomento Economico Mexicano from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Fomento Economico Mexicano from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $107.45.

About Fomento Economico Mexicano

Fomento Económico Mexicano, SAB. de C.V., through its subsidiaries, operates as a bottler of Coca-Cola trademark beverages. The company produces, markets, and distributes Coca-Cola trademark beverages in Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay.