Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Reaches New 12-Month Low on Analyst Downgrade

Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX's stock price reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday after CIBC lowered their price target on the stock from $63.00 to $55.00. CIBC currently has an outperformer rating on the stock. Methanex traded as low as $33.97 and last traded at $34.34, with a volume of 390078 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.09.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on MEOH. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Methanex from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Methanex in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Scotiabank lowered Methanex from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $53.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Methanex from $57.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.63.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Methanex

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Methanex by 35.7% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 18,840 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $941,000 after acquiring an additional 4,952 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Methanex by 1.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 104,871 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $4,340,000 after purchasing an additional 1,203 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Methanex by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 8,316 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $415,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Methanex by 64.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,447 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $845,000 after buying an additional 8,047 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Methanex by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,845 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $142,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. 73.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Methanex Trading Down 7.6 %

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $42.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.02. The firm has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.43 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH - Get Free Report) TSE: MX last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.30. Methanex had a net margin of 4.41% and a return on equity of 10.97%. As a group, research analysts expect that Methanex Co. will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.185 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.58%. Methanex's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.03%.

About Methanex

Methanex Corporation produces and supplies methanol in China, Europe, the United States, South America, South Korea, Canada, and Asia. The company also purchases methanol produced by others under methanol offtake contracts and on the spot market. In addition, it owns and leases storage and terminal facilities.