Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Trading Up 3.7% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) rose 3.7% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $63.84 and last traded at $63.87. Approximately 347,928 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 1,145,705 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.57.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MEOH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on Methanex from $53.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Methanex from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their target price on Methanex from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Methanex from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.50.

Methanex Stock Up 3.8%

The company has a current ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $52.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $43.76. The firm has a market cap of $4.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.50 and a beta of 0.56.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by ($0.95). Methanex had a return on equity of 5.35% and a net margin of 2.21%.The firm had revenue of $968.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. Methanex’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Methanex Corporation will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.185 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Methanex

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in Methanex by 1,244.4% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,331 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,232 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Methanex during the second quarter valued at about $50,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted 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 valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 1,375 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted 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 valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 1,410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in Methanex by 115.3% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 4,199 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 2,249 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.49% of the company’s stock.

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).