Cemex (NYSE:CX) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Cemex (NYSE:CX) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Cemex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Cemex from $14.10 to $14.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Cemex in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Citigroup upgraded Cemex from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $13.70 to $12.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on Cemex from $13.50 to $13.25 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.94.

Cemex Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CX opened at $10.21 on Thursday. Cemex has a fifty-two week low of $9.30 and a fifty-two week high of $13.67. The company has a market cap of $14.78 billion, a PE ratio of 30.02 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.92. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.61.

Cemex (NYSE:CX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The construction company reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $4.59 billion during the quarter. Cemex had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 3.82%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Cemex will post 0.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Zambrano Lozano acquired 400,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.28 per share, for a total transaction of $6,925,824.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,000,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $172,800,000. This trade represents a 4.18% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mauricio Doehner sold 927,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.57, for a total transaction of $8,880,003.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 584,930 shares in the company, valued at $5,597,780.10. The trade was a 61.34% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its holdings in Cemex by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 21,224,097 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $201,841,000 after purchasing an additional 1,951,012 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Cemex by 7.4% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 4,150,537 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $47,482,000 after purchasing an additional 287,350 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Cemex by 14.4% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 4,046,527 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $46,292,000 after buying an additional 508,016 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in shares of Cemex by 1,747.0% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 3,646,000 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $41,710,000 after buying an additional 3,448,600 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi raised its stake in shares of Cemex by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 3,115,879 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $35,646,000 after buying an additional 264,248 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Cemex Company Profile

Cemex, SAB. de C.V. is a global building materials company headquartered in San Pedro Garza García, Mexico. The company produces and markets cement, ready-mix concrete, aggregates and related construction materials used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects.

Cemex also provides construction solutions and services, including materials distribution, logistics and digital tools designed to support contractors, builders and other customers. Its products serve a broad range of applications, from housing and commercial development to roads, bridges, airports and other major infrastructure.

Founded in Mexico in 1906, Cemex has expanded through organic growth and acquisitions into an international business serving customers across the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.