ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd Sells 182,190 Shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. $FMX

Key Points

• ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd reduced its Fomento Economico Mexicano stake by 15.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 182,190 shares and leaving it with 962,690 shares valued at about $97.3 million.
• Several other institutions adjusted their positions as well, and institutional investors now own 61.0% of the company. Insider selling was also notable, with Director Garza Alfonso Garza and others selling shares last quarter.
• Analysts remain moderately bullish on FMX, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $114.33. The stock recently traded at $121.38, near its 52-week high of $125.71, while the company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.6658 per share.

ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX - Free Report) by 15.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 962,690 shares of the company's stock after selling 182,190 shares during the quarter. Fomento Economico Mexicano makes up approximately 2.0% of ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd's holdings in Fomento Economico Mexicano were worth $97,306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. INCA Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. INCA Investments LLC now owns 395,261 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,949,000 after purchasing an additional 25,536 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC increased its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 6,698 shares of the company's stock worth $677,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 33,251 shares of the company's stock worth $3,361,000 after acquiring an additional 5,643 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. increased its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 14,679 shares of the company's stock worth $1,484,000 after acquiring an additional 2,061 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,807 shares of the company's stock worth $789,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on FMX. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $109.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $114.33.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Stock Down 0.7%

FMX stock opened at $121.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.15, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.42. The business's fifty day moving average price is $113.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.43. Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. has a fifty-two week low of $83.08 and a fifty-two week high of $125.71.

Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $2.43 earnings per share for the quarter. Fomento Economico Mexicano had a return on equity of 7.33% and a net margin of 3.40%.The firm had revenue of $11.61 billion for the quarter. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.6658 per share. This represents a $2.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 22nd. Fomento Economico Mexicano's payout ratio is 53.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fomento Economico Mexicano

In other news, Director Garza Alfonso Garza sold 52,311 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.19, for a total transaction of $585,360.09. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,128,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,627,389.07. The trade was a 4.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold 261,575 shares of company stock worth $2,795,188 in the last quarter. Insiders own 5.68% of the company's stock.

About Fomento Economico Mexicano

Fomento Económico Mexicano, SAB. de C.V. (FEMSA) is a Mexican multinational company active primarily in the retail and beverage sectors. Headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico, FEMSA's operations span convenience store retailing, beverage bottling and distribution, and related logistics and consumer services. The company's business model combines high-frequency retail outlets with large-scale beverage production and a regional supply chain network.

FEMSA Comercio, the company's retail arm, operates a large chain of convenience stores under the OXXO brand and has expanded its retail footprint with complementary formats and services.

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