Proficio Capital Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Methanex Co. (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 23,422 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,170,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Methanex by 4,776.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 900,284 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $44,960,000 after acquiring an additional 881,823 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 130,127 shares during the last quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. acquired a new position in Methanex during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,540,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Methanex during the 3rd quarter worth $1,092,000. Finally, PDT Partners LLC increased its position in Methanex by 83.3% in the third quarter. PDT Partners LLC now owns 53,488 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,211,000 after buying an additional 24,314 shares during the period. 73.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MEOH shares. CIBC restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Methanex in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of 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 reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Methanex in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group increased their price objective on Methanex from $53.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Scotiabank cut Methanex from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $66.00 to $53.00 in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.63.

Methanex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MEOH opened at $38.32 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.59 and a beta of 1.38. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $35.67 and a 12 month high of $56.43. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $45.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.42.

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

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. Methanex’s payout ratio is 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.