Short Interest in Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) Expands By 22.8%

Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 669,100 shares, a growth of 22.8% from the February 13th total of 544,900 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 427,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days. Currently, 1.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays upped their price objective on Methanex from $54.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Methanex in a report on Friday, January 31st. CIBC restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Methanex in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Methanex from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Methanex presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.63.

Methanex Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of MEOH traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $37.85. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 36,257 shares, compared to its average volume of 334,375. The company’s 50 day moving average is $46.17 and its 200 day moving average is $44.51. The stock has a market cap of $2.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.40 and a beta of 1.38. Methanex has a 12-month low of $35.67 and a 12-month high of $56.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 2.00.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.30. Methanex had a net margin of 4.41% and a return on equity of 10.97%. Equities analysts anticipate that Methanex will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a $0.185 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.03%.

Institutional Trading of Methanex

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MEOH. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Methanex during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Methanex by 39.7% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,015 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 573 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Methanex during the fourth quarter worth approximately $106,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of Methanex in the 4th quarter valued at $129,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Methanex by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,845 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.49% of the company’s stock.

About Methanex

Methanex Corporation produces and supplies methanol in China, Europe, the United States, South America, South Korea, Canada, and Asia. The company also purchases methanol produced by others under methanol offtake contracts and on the spot market. In addition, it owns and leases storage and terminal facilities.