Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) had its target price hoisted by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $53.00 to $60.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. UBS Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 10.78% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on MEOH. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Methanex in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised Methanex from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Methanex in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Raymond James Financial downgraded Methanex from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce cut shares of Methanex from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $46.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.70.

Methanex Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MEOH traded up $2.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $54.16. The stock had a trading volume of 263,790 shares, compared to its average volume of 576,595. Methanex has a 1 year low of $25.46 and a 1 year high of $54.35. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.47. The company has a market capitalization of $4.19 billion, a PE ratio of 18.36 and a beta of 0.65.

Institutional Trading of Methanex

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MEOH. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Methanex by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,746,051 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $108,917,000 after purchasing an additional 336,316 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Methanex by 629.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,316,270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $92,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,998,763 shares during the period. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Methanex by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 2,048,214 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $81,363,000 after purchasing an additional 7,707 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd increased its position in shares of Methanex by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,803,108 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $71,520,000 after acquiring an additional 518,173 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Methanex by 35.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,728,377 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $57,209,000 after purchasing an additional 451,728 shares during the period. 73.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Methanex

Methanex Corporation is a Vancouver, Canada–based company and one of the world’s largest producers and suppliers of methanol. The company manufactures methanol, a key feedstock for a wide range of chemical products and industrial applications. Methanex markets its product to customers in energy, plastics, paints and coatings, and various chemical sectors, positioning the company as a critical link in the global supply chain for basic chemicals.

The company’s core product, methanol, serves as a building block for downstream chemicals such as formaldehyde, acetic acid and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).