Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:FMX) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $118.6667.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FMX shares. Zacks Research upgraded Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Fomento Economico Mexicano from $117.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen cut Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from $118.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Price Performance

Shares of FMX stock opened at $129.46 on Wednesday. Fomento Economico Mexicano has a 1 year low of $83.08 and a 1 year high of $131.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $123.38 and its 200-day moving average is $113.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.96, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.41.

Fomento Economico Mexicano (NYSE:FMX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $2.43 earnings per share for the quarter. Fomento Economico Mexicano had a net margin of 3.40% and a return on equity of 7.33%. The firm had revenue of $11.61 billion during the quarter. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fomento Economico Mexicano will post 6.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fomento Economico Mexicano Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 15th will be issued a $1.827 dividend. This is an increase from Fomento Economico Mexicano’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $7.31 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 15th. Fomento Economico Mexicano’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.47%.

Institutional Trading of Fomento Economico Mexicano

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano during the first quarter worth $28,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 2,006.2% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 337 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Fomento Economico Mexicano by 42.5% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 439 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano during the 4th quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in shares of Fomento Economico Mexicano by 220.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 725 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.00% of the company’s stock.

About Fomento Economico Mexicano

Fomento Económico Mexicano, SAB. de C.V. (FEMSA) is a Mexican multinational company active primarily in the retail and beverage sectors. Headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico, FEMSA’s operations span convenience store retailing, beverage bottling and distribution, and related logistics and consumer services. The company’s business model combines high-frequency retail outlets with large-scale beverage production and a regional supply chain network.

FEMSA Comercio, the company’s retail arm, operates a large chain of convenience stores under the OXXO brand and has expanded its retail footprint with complementary formats and services.