Ausbil Investment Management Ltd Acquires New Stake in Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH)

Ausbil Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $386,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in Methanex by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,182,168 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,022,000 after acquiring an additional 106,848 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Methanex by 13.0% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 508,730 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $24,551,000 after purchasing an additional 58,719 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Methanex by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 205,102 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $8,483,000 after buying an additional 8,850 shares during the last quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Methanex by 27.8% during the 3rd quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 202,863 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $8,387,000 after buying an additional 44,173 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Methanex by 1,495.7% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 138,827 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,739,000 after buying an additional 130,127 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.49% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on MEOH. Cibc World Mkts raised Methanex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Methanex from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Methanex in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Methanex from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on Methanex from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.75.

Methanex Stock Performance

NASDAQ MEOH opened at $52.20 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Methanex Co. has a twelve month low of $36.13 and a twelve month high of $56.43. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $48.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.96. The firm has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.60 and a beta of 1.37.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.30. Methanex had a net margin of 4.41% and a return on equity of 11.10%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Methanex Co. will post 4.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.185 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.03%.

Methanex Company Profile

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.