Value Partners Investments Inc. Buys New Position in Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX)

Value Partners Investments Inc. bought a new position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 95,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,339,000. Fomento Economico Mexicano makes up approximately 0.8% of Value Partners Investments Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano during the first quarter worth $46,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new stake in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano in the fourth quarter valued at about $72,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 56.2% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 831 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano in the first quarter worth about $207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.00% of the company's stock.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano stock traded up $1.13 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $102.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 83,055 shares, compared to its average volume of 601,922. The stock has a market cap of $36.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.67. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $104.43 and a 200-day moving average of $95.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.64.

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

Fomento Economico Mexicano Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 5th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th were issued a $1.628 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 24th. This is an increase from Fomento Economico Mexicano's previous dividend of $0.92. Fomento Economico Mexicano's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on FMX. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Itau BBA Securities upgraded Fomento Economico Mexicano from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Fomento Economico Mexicano from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $106.70.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Profile

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.