Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Methanex has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Zacks Research, reflecting increased confidence in the company's stock performance.
• Multiple research firms have set target prices for Methanex, with estimates ranging from $33.00 to $50.00, indicating a generally positive outlook for the stock.
• Despite a 13.4% year-over-year decline in revenue, Methanex reported a significant EPS of $0.97 for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX was upgraded by Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

MEOH has been the topic of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Methanex in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $33.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial set a $45.00 target price on Methanex and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Scotiabank set a $50.00 target price on Methanex and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Methanex from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised Methanex from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $44.88.

Methanex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MEOH traded up $0.70 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $39.47. The company had a trading volume of 970,352 shares, compared to its average volume of 391,005. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $33.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 2.13. Methanex has a 12 month low of $25.46 and a 12 month high of $54.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.87.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $808.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $835.04 million. Methanex had a return on equity of 12.61% and a net margin of 7.02%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.62 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Methanex will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Methanex

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Methanex by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,131,471 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $74,740,000 after purchasing an additional 14,611 shares during the period. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Methanex by 66.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,041,412 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $67,577,000 after purchasing an additional 814,877 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Methanex by 35.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,728,377 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $57,209,000 after acquiring an additional 451,728 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Methanex by 28.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,568,264 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $51,960,000 after acquiring an additional 343,876 shares during the period. Finally, Encompass Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Methanex by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,118,102 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $37,009,000 after acquiring an additional 118,797 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.