LPL Financial LLC Raises Holdings in Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX)

LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX - Free Report) by 93.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,391 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,960 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in Fomento Económico Mexicano were worth $1,230,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Fomento Económico Mexicano by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 12,655,733 shares of the company's stock worth $1,081,939,000 after purchasing an additional 2,150,913 shares during the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its holdings in Fomento Económico Mexicano by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,325,489 shares of the company's stock worth $369,786,000 after purchasing an additional 18,750 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Fomento Económico Mexicano by 23.8% during the fourth quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 924,669 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,050,000 after buying an additional 177,843 shares during the last quarter. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Fomento Económico Mexicano by 28.4% during the fourth quarter. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd now owns 815,739 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,743,000 after buying an additional 180,244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Fomento Económico Mexicano by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 654,778 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,977,000 after buying an additional 74,082 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.00% of the company's stock.

Fomento Económico Mexicano Stock Performance

NYSE:FMX traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $106.51. The company's stock had a trading volume of 152,703 shares, compared to its average volume of 627,374. Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V. has a 1 year low of $81.08 and a 1 year high of $123.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market cap of $38.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.31, a PEG ratio of 5.26 and a beta of 0.68. The business's fifty day moving average is $96.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.26.

Fomento Económico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.51 by ($1.05). Fomento Económico Mexicano had a return on equity of 8.37% and a net margin of 3.22%. The company had revenue of $9.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $201.67 billion. Analysts anticipate that Fomento Económico Mexicano, S.A.B. de C.V. will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fomento Económico Mexicano Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be issued a $1.628 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 24th. This is an increase from Fomento Económico Mexicano's previous dividend of $0.92. Fomento Económico Mexicano's payout ratio is currently 11.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FMX. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Fomento Económico Mexicano from $109.00 to $97.80 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Fomento Económico Mexicano from $94.00 to $107.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Itau BBA Securities raised shares of Fomento Económico Mexicano from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Fomento Económico Mexicano from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.95.

Fomento Económico Mexicano Company Profile

Fomento Económico Mexicano, SAB. de C.V., through its subsidiaries, operates as a bottler of Coca-Cola trademark beverages. The company produces, markets, and distributes Coca-Cola trademark beverages in Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay.