Brokerages Set Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) PT at $66.78

Shares of Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $66.7778.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Methanex from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Methanex from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research downgraded Methanex from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Methanex from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their price objective on Methanex from $52.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Methanex

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Methanex during the second quarter worth about $50,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in Methanex by 336.2% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,784 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 1,375 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in Methanex by 61.0% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,143 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $85,000 after buying an additional 812 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in Methanex by 131.5% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,482 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $99,000 after buying an additional 1,410 shares during the period. Finally, AXA S.A. purchased a new position in Methanex during the second quarter worth about $166,000. 73.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Methanex Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:MEOH opened at $48.08 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Methanex has a 52-week low of $32.00 and a 52-week high of $66.75. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $58.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.57. The company has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -98.12 and a beta of 0.56.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.08). Methanex had a negative net margin of 1.25% and a positive return on equity of 2.96%. The company had revenue of $957.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $964.76 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Methanex will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.185 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio is -151.02%.

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).