Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX) Short Interest Up 62.8% in December

Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX) saw a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,268,478 shares, an increase of 62.8% from the November 30th total of 779,076 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 503,549 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 503,549 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FMX. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $107.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Fomento Economico Mexicano from $96.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. UBS Group raised Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $115.00 to $111.00 in a report on Friday, September 19th. Citigroup upgraded Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $93.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fomento Economico Mexicano currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.63.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Price Performance

Shares of FMX traded down $0.41 on Monday, hitting $102.75. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 284,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 491,947. The company has a market capitalization of $36.76 billion, a PE ratio of 41.43, a PEG ratio of 5.30 and a beta of 0.47. Fomento Economico Mexicano has a fifty-two week low of $81.07 and a fifty-two week high of $108.74. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $97.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $11.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $215.60 billion. Fomento Economico Mexicano had a net margin of 2.09% and a return on equity of 5.01%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fomento Economico Mexicano will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 16th were issued a $1.9982 dividend. This is a positive change from Fomento Economico Mexicano’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $7.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 16th. Fomento Economico Mexicano’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fomento Economico Mexicano

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FMX. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 2,006.3% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 41.4% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 42.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 439 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in Fomento Economico Mexicano in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Company Profile

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.