Wall Street Zen Upgrades McEwen (NYSE:MUX) to “Hold”

McEwen (NYSE:MUX) (TSE:MUX) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Roth Capital set a $31.00 target price on shares of McEwen and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Zacks Research lowered shares of McEwen from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of McEwen in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price objective (down from $29.50) on shares of McEwen in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.00.

McEwen Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE MUX opened at $19.52 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.49 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $18.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $20.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.04. McEwen has a 52 week low of $13.05 and a 52 week high of $29.70.

McEwen (NYSE:MUX) (TSE:MUX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.14). McEwen had a return on equity of 13.48% and a net margin of 32.46%.The business had revenue of $59.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $65.51 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that McEwen will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at McEwen

In related news, Director Richard Brissenden sold 3,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.13, for a total value of $59,375.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $326,738.86. This trade represents a 15.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 14.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of McEwen

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUX. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in McEwen by 4,309.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 638,871 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,823,000 after acquiring an additional 624,382 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of McEwen by 44.2% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 63,768 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $481,000 after purchasing an additional 19,548 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of McEwen by 105.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 208,100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,571,000 after purchasing an additional 106,800 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of McEwen by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 509,426 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,897,000 after purchasing an additional 1,585 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in McEwen by 92.5% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 198,771 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,910,000 after purchasing an additional 95,488 shares during the last quarter. 17.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About McEwen

McEwen Inc is a mining company focused on the exploration, development, and production of gold, silver, and copper. The company’s portfolio includes operating mines, advanced development projects, and exploration properties in the United States, Canada, and Argentina.

Its principal gold assets include the Fox Complex in Ontario, Canada, and the Gold Bar mine in Nevada. McEwen also has an interest in the San José mine in Argentina, which has historically produced gold and silver, and is advancing the Los Azules copper project in San Juan Province, Argentina, through its McEwen Copper subsidiary.

McEwen was founded by mining entrepreneur Rob McEwen, who serves as chairman.