Short Interest in Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) Grows By 22.8%

Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 669,100 shares, an increase of 22.8% from the February 13th total of 544,900 shares. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 427,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days.

Methanex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MEOH traded down $0.08 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $37.74. 264,017 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 335,559. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $46.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.58. The company has a market cap of $2.54 billion, a PE ratio of 16.34 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 2.62, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. Methanex has a 12-month low of $35.67 and a 12-month high of $56.43.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.30. Methanex had a return on equity of 10.97% and a net margin of 4.41%. On average, analysts forecast that Methanex will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.185 per share. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MEOH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Scotiabank lowered Methanex from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $53.00 in a report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Methanex in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James raised their price target on Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Cibc World Mkts raised Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Methanex from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.63.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. US Bancorp DE raised its position 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 worth $941,000 after purchasing an additional 4,952 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Methanex by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 104,871 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,340,000 after purchasing an additional 1,203 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Methanex by 17.6% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Methanex by 64.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,447 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $845,000 after purchasing an additional 8,047 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Methanex by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,845 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. 73.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Methanex Company Profile

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.