Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Shares Up 6.8% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Methanex shares rose 6.8% to about $60.45, although trading volume was 92% below the average session level.
• Analysts maintain a cautiously positive outlook: six rate the stock a Buy and five a Hold, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $68.56.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $3.87, slightly below estimates, while revenue increased 75% year over year to $1.40 billion; Methanex also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.185, equating to a 1.2% annual yield.

Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX's stock price rose 6.8% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $61.37 and last traded at $60.4520. Approximately 85,617 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 1,081,030 shares. The stock had previously closed at $56.59.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MEOH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Methanex from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Methanex from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Methanex from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised Methanex from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $71.00 in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Methanex from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Methanex presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.56.

Methanex Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.68 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $52.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.21.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.87 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.00 by ($0.13). Methanex had a net margin of 2.07% and a return on equity of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.97 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 75.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Methanex Corporation will post 8.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be paid a $0.185 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Methanex's payout ratio is currently 71.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Methanex

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Methanex during the second quarter worth about $5,040,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Methanex in the 2nd quarter valued at about $56,683,000. Man Group plc acquired a new position in Methanex in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,078,000. PDT Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Methanex during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $464,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Methanex during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,677,000. 73.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Methanex Company Profile

Methanex Corporation is a Vancouver, Canada–based company and one of the world's largest producers and suppliers of methanol. The company manufactures methanol, a key feedstock for a wide range of chemical products and industrial applications. Methanex markets its product to customers in energy, plastics, paints and coatings, and various chemical sectors, positioning the company as a critical link in the global supply chain for basic chemicals.

The company's core product, methanol, serves as a building block for downstream chemicals such as formaldehyde, acetic acid and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).

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