Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $33.57, but opened at $34.82. Methanex shares last traded at $34.16, with a volume of 61,738 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on MEOH. Barclays lowered their price target on Methanex from $57.00 to $41.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Piper Sandler set a $48.00 price target on Methanex and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Sunday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Methanex from $55.00 to $50.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Scotiabank raised Methanex from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $53.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price target on Methanex from $62.00 to $40.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Methanex has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.25.

Methanex Stock Up 0.3%

The company has a fifty day moving average of $32.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $41.44. The company has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a PE ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 2.62.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $857.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. Methanex had a return on equity of 10.97% and a net margin of 4.41%. Methanex’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Methanex Co. will post 4.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.185 dividend. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.83%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Methanex

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in Methanex in the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Methanex during the first quarter valued at about $55,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Methanex in the 1st quarter worth approximately $82,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Methanex by 39.7% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,015 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $101,000 after buying an additional 573 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Methanex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $106,000. 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.