Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. $FMX Shares Sold by Baillie Gifford & Co.

Key Points

• Baillie Gifford & Co. trimmed its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 6.8% in Q4, selling 256,379 shares and now holds 3,496,366 shares (about 0.98%) valued at roughly $353.4 million.
• Insider activity: Director Garza sold 52,316 shares on March 25 for about $579k, insiders have sold 261,575 shares (~$2.8M) in the last 90 days, and corporate insiders still own 5.68% of the company.
• FEMSA declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6658 ($2.66 annual, ~2.3% yield) with an 80% payout ratio, and analysts hold a consensus Hold rating with an average target price of $110.67.

Baillie Gifford & Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX - Free Report) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,496,366 shares of the company's stock after selling 256,379 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned approximately 0.98% of Fomento Economico Mexicano worth $353,378,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 2,006.3% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 337 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 42.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 439 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 220.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 725 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 49.0% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,170 shares of the company's stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. 61.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FMX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $109.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $113.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fomento Economico Mexicano has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $110.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fomento Economico Mexicano news, Director Garza Alfonso Garza sold 52,316 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.07, for a total value of $579,138.12. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,233,080 shares in the company, valued at $13,650,195.60. This represents a 4.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 261,575 shares of company stock valued at $2,795,188 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 5.68% of the company's stock.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:FMX opened at $116.59 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.29 billion, a PE ratio of 40.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.40. The firm's 50-day moving average is $110.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.87. Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. has a 1 year low of $83.08 and a 1 year high of $118.43.

Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, February 14th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $12.21 billion for the quarter. Fomento Economico Mexicano had a net margin of 2.29% and a return on equity of 6.11%. Analysts predict that Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.6658 per share. This represents a $2.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 22nd. Fomento Economico Mexicano's dividend payout ratio is presently 80.00%.

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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