Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX) Hits New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $125.00 to $130.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Fomento Economico Mexicano traded as high as $132.85 and last traded at $133.2710, with a volume of 58127 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $129.01.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on FMX. Zacks Research upgraded Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $122.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Fomento Economico Mexicano from $117.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen cut Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $119.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fomento Economico Mexicano

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FMX. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 2,006.2% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 337 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 42.5% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 439 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the period. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 220.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $124.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $46.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.41.

Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $11.61 billion for the quarter. Fomento Economico Mexicano had a net margin of 3.40% and a return on equity of 7.33%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. will post 6.19 EPS for the current year.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.827 per share. This is a boost from Fomento Economico Mexicano’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. This represents a $7.31 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. Fomento Economico Mexicano’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.47%.

About Fomento Economico Mexicano

Fomento Económico Mexicano, SAB. de C.V. (FEMSA) is a Mexican multinational company active primarily in the retail and beverage sectors. Headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico, FEMSA’s operations span convenience store retailing, beverage bottling and distribution, and related logistics and consumer services. The company’s business model combines high-frequency retail outlets with large-scale beverage production and a regional supply chain network.

FEMSA Comercio, the company’s retail arm, operates a large chain of convenience stores under the OXXO brand and has expanded its retail footprint with complementary formats and services.