Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) Short Interest Update

Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 840,800 shares, an increase of 34.1% from the March 31st total of 627,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 546,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 1.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Methanex Price Performance

NASDAQ MEOH traded up $0.61 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $32.98. 988,999 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 380,205. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 2.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.00. Methanex has a 1 year low of $25.46 and a 1 year high of $56.43. The company has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28 and a beta of 1.06.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $857.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.06 billion. Methanex had a return on equity of 10.97% and a net margin of 4.41%. Methanex's revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.65 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Methanex will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.185 per share. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Methanex's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Methanex from $53.00 to $51.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com cut shares of Methanex from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. Scotiabank lowered shares of Methanex from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $66.00 to $53.00 in a research report on Monday, March 10th. CIBC decreased their price target on shares of Methanex from $55.00 to $47.00 and set an "outperformer" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Methanex from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Methanex

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MEOH. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Methanex by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,836,661 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $241,549,000 after buying an additional 62,467 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in Methanex by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,330,889 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $166,384,000 after acquiring an additional 95,950 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Methanex by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,116,860 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $105,779,000 after purchasing an additional 37,658 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Methanex by 41.8% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,276,649 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $44,798,000 after purchasing an additional 376,365 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Methanex by 26.6% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,077,193 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $53,770,000 after purchasing an additional 226,349 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.49% of the company's stock.

About Methanex

Methanex Corporation produces and supplies methanol in China, Europe, the United States, South America, South Korea, Canada, and Asia. The company also purchases methanol produced by others under methanol offtake contracts and on the spot market. In addition, it owns and leases storage and terminal facilities.

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