Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Stock Price Down 11.5% – What’s Next?

Shares of Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) dropped 11.5% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $37.49 and last traded at $37.41. Approximately 162,497 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 50% from the average daily volume of 323,373 shares. The stock had previously closed at $42.25.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MEOH shares. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Methanex from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $66.00 to $53.00 in a report on Monday. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. CIBC restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Methanex in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Methanex from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.63.

Methanex Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a PE ratio of 15.81 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 2.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $47.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.82.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Methanex Co. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.185 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.03%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Methanex

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Methanex in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Methanex by 39.7% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,015 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 573 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Methanex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $106,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Methanex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $129,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Methanex by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,845 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. 73.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.