Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Upgraded by Zacks Research to Hold Rating

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upped their price target on shares of Methanex from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Methanex from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut shares of Methanex from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $55.00 to $65.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of Methanex from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Methanex from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Methanex presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $55.50.

Methanex Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ MEOH opened at $57.59 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 2.06. Methanex has a 52-week low of $26.47 and a 52-week high of $66.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $53.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.74. The stock has a market cap of $4.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.96 and a beta of 0.56.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.81 by ($0.95). Methanex had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 5.35%. The business had revenue of $968.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.24 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Methanex will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Methanex

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MEOH. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new position in Methanex during the second quarter worth $50,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Methanex by 1,244.4% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,331 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 1,232 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Methanex by 336.2% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,784 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 1,375 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Methanex by 131.5% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,482 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 1,410 shares during the period. Finally, AXA S.A. acquired a new stake in Methanex in the second quarter worth $166,000. Institutional investors own 73.49% of the company’s stock.

Methanex Company Profile

Methanex Corporation is a Vancouver, Canada–based company and one of the world’s largest producers and suppliers of methanol. The company manufactures methanol, a key feedstock for a wide range of chemical products and industrial applications. Methanex markets its product to customers in energy, plastics, paints and coatings, and various chemical sectors, positioning the company as a critical link in the global supply chain for basic chemicals.

The company’s core product, methanol, serves as a building block for downstream chemicals such as formaldehyde, acetic acid and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).