Barclays Cuts Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Price Target to $41.00

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) had its price target lowered by Barclays from $57.00 to $41.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on MEOH. Cibc World Mkts raised Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. CIBC restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Methanex in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group raised their target price on Methanex from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Methanex in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.63.

Methanex Stock Down 8.7 %

MEOH opened at $31.08 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $42.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.03. 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 has a twelve month low of $30.98 and a twelve month high of $56.43. The stock has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.45 and a beta of 1.38.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Methanex will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Methanex’s payout ratio is currently 32.03%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Methanex by 4,776.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 900,284 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,960,000 after purchasing an additional 881,823 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Methanex during the 4th quarter valued at $38,301,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Methanex during the 4th quarter valued at $34,119,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Methanex during the 4th quarter worth $26,835,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Methanex in the fourth quarter worth $14,327,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.49% of the company’s stock.

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.