Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. $FMX Shares Purchased by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management increased its FMX stake by 367.3% in the third quarter, acquiring 69,245 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 88,097 shares valued at approximately $10.45 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains moderately positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.83; JPMorgan and Benchmark recently upgraded the stock.
• FEMSA declared a quarterly dividend of $1.7804 per share, down from $1.8270 previously, representing an annualized yield of about 5.6%.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX - Free Report) by 367.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,097 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 69,245 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Fomento Economico Mexicano were worth $10,445,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 5.8% during the first quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,491 shares of the company's stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the period. Matthews International Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 0.6% during the first quarter. Matthews International Capital Management LLC now owns 31,465 shares of the company's stock worth $3,495,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 79.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 396 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 4.1% during the first quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 4,614 shares of the company's stock valued at $512,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Wealth LLC boosted its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 2.9% during the first quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 6,894 shares of the company's stock valued at $766,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on FMX shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Fomento Economico Mexicano from $139.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Benchmark raised Fomento Economico Mexicano to an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Zacks Research cut Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $126.00 to $151.00 in a research note on Friday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $139.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fomento Economico Mexicano news, Director Michael David Kahn bought 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $118.13 per share, for a total transaction of $248,073.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 2,100 shares in the company, valued at $248,073. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 5.68% of the company's stock.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Price Performance

FMX stock opened at $126.93 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $119.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.71. The company has a market capitalization of $43.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.65, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.41. Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. has a 52-week low of $90.87 and a 52-week high of $141.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $13.20 billion during the quarter. Fomento Economico Mexicano had a return on equity of 7.24% and a net margin of 3.60%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. will post 6.35 EPS for the current year.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.7804 per share. This is a decrease from Fomento Economico Mexicano's previous quarterly dividend of $1.8270. This represents a $7.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 14th. Fomento Economico Mexicano's payout ratio is 47.60%.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Company Profile

Fomento Económico Mexicano, SAB. de C.V. (FEMSA) is a Monterrey, Mexico-based multinational company with operations focused on beverage bottling, retail and related consumer services. The company traces its origins to 1890, when it was established as a brewery in Monterrey, and has since developed into one of Latin America's largest consumer-facing businesses.

FEMSA's principal beverage business is Coca-Cola FEMSA, which produces, markets, sells and distributes Coca-Cola trademark beverages and other nonalcoholic drinks.

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