Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Trading Up 8.7% – Should You Buy?

Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) traded up 8.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $54.28 and last traded at $54.19. 484,738 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 26% from the average session volume of 658,360 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MEOH. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Methanex from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Methanex from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce downgraded Methanex from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $46.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Methanex from $53.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered Methanex from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Methanex has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.70.

Methanex Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $4.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.58 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $47.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 2.06.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.14) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.81 by ($0.95). Methanex had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 5.35%. The company had revenue of $968.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. Methanex’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Methanex Corporation will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.185 per share. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio is 65.49%.

Institutional Trading of Methanex

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MEOH. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Methanex by 629.5% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,316,270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $92,000,000 after acquiring an additional 1,998,763 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Methanex by 249.8% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,432,483 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $56,939,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022,987 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Methanex during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,306,000. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Methanex by 686.0% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 963,408 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $38,277,000 after acquiring an additional 840,831 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in Methanex by 66.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,041,412 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $67,577,000 after buying an additional 814,877 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).