Methanex Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:MEOH)

Methanex Corporation (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders acquired 35,044 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 9,689% compared to the typical volume of 358 put options.

Methanex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MEOH opened at $61.51 on Thursday. Methanex has a one year low of $32.00 and a one year high of $66.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The company has a market cap of $4.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.72 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.82.

Methanex (NASDAQ:MEOH) (TSE:MX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.00 by ($0.13). Methanex had a return on equity of 11.35% and a net margin of 2.07%.The company had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 75.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Methanex will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Methanex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be issued a $0.185 dividend. This represents a $0.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 16th. Methanex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. National Bank Financial set a $70.00 target price on shares of Methanex and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Methanex from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Methanex from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Methanex from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Methanex from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Methanex currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.56.

Institutional Trading of Methanex

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MEOH. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its holdings in Methanex by 482.8% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 75,384 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,479,000 after buying an additional 62,449 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in Methanex during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $83,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Methanex in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Readystate Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Methanex during the second quarter valued at $2,255,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Methanex by 530.8% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 29,267 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,351,000 after purchasing an additional 24,627 shares during the period. 73.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Methanex Company Profile

Methanex Corporation is a global producer and distributor of methanol, a versatile chemical used in the manufacture of formaldehyde, acetic acid, solvents, plastics, and other industrial products. Methanol is also used in fuel blending, marine fuel applications, wastewater treatment, and the production of emerging low-carbon fuels and chemicals.

Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, Methanex operates methanol production facilities in regions including North America, South America, New Zealand, Egypt, and Trinidad.