Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Shares of Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $58.36, but opened at $53.65. Methanex shares last traded at $53.3850, with a volume of 138,089 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MEOH shares. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lifted 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. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Methanex from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets lifted 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. Zacks Research raised shares of Methanex from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Methanex in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.00.

Methanex Trading Down 6.5%

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $54.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 2.06 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.14 and a beta of 0.56.

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

Methanex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.185 per share. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th. Methanex’s payout ratio is presently 65.49%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MEOH. Amundi lifted its position in shares of Methanex by 3.9% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 22,791 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 848 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in shares of Methanex in the second quarter worth $419,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Methanex by 15.7% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 249,231 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $8,250,000 after buying an additional 33,827 shares during the last quarter. AXA S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Methanex in the second quarter worth $166,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its stake in shares of Methanex by 327.0% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 47,284 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,565,000 after buying an additional 36,211 shares during the last quarter. 73.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Methanex

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).