Virtus Advisers LLC Makes New $30,000 Investment in Methode Electronics, Inc. $MEI

Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Methode Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:MEI) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 4,673 shares of the electronics maker’s stock, valued at approximately $30,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MEI. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Methode Electronics during the first quarter worth about $2,379,000. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Methode Electronics by 29.1% during the first quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 1,553,250 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $9,910,000 after purchasing an additional 349,890 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Methode Electronics by 40.7% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 481,304 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $5,675,000 after purchasing an additional 139,309 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Methode Electronics by 93.5% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 286,196 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $3,374,000 after buying an additional 138,269 shares during the period. Finally, Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Methode Electronics by 188.3% in the first quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 163,162 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $1,041,000 after buying an additional 106,568 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded Methode Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, August 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $10.50.

Methode Electronics Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:MEI opened at $7.5130 on Tuesday. Methode Electronics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $5.08 and a 1 year high of $17.45. The company has a market cap of $264.53 million, a PE ratio of -4.22 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $7.68 and its 200 day moving average is $7.61.

Methode Electronics (NYSE:MEI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 9th. The electronics maker reported ($0.77) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.80). Methode Electronics had a negative net margin of 5.97% and a negative return on equity of 5.60%. The business had revenue of $257,100 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $228.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.23) EPS. Methode Electronics has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Methode Electronics, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current year.

Methode Electronics Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 21st. Methode Electronics’s payout ratio is currently -15.73%.

About Methode Electronics

Methode Electronics, Inc designs, engineers, and produces mechatronic products worldwide. It operates through four segments: Automotive, Industrial, Interface, and Medical. The Automotive segment supplies electronic and electro-mechanical devices, and related products to automobile original equipment manufacturers directly or through their tiered suppliers.