Cemex (NYSE:CX) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Cemex S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:CX)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $13.41 and last traded at $13.4550, with a volume of 1747216 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on CX shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Cemex in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. HSBC lowered Cemex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $12.80 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Cemex from $13.90 to $14.10 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Cemex in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Cemex from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $12.77.

Cemex Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average is $11.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.00 billion, a PE ratio of 40.99 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Cemex (NYSE:CX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The construction company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Cemex had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 3.64%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cemex S.A.B. de C.V. will post 0.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cemex Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th were issued a $0.0225 dividend. This represents a $0.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 11th. This is a positive change from Cemex’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.02. Cemex’s payout ratio is 28.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cemex news, insider Herrera Jesus Vicente Gonzalez sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.16, for a total transaction of $425,600.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 846,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,287,481.60. The trade was a 3.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cemex

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Cemex by 84.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,529,612 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $40,721,000 after purchasing an additional 2,080,341 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cemex during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,124,000. WCM Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cemex during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,699,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its stake in shares of Cemex by 84.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 195,439 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,757,000 after buying an additional 89,465 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in shares of Cemex during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,059,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

About Cemex

Cemex (NYSE: CX) is a global building materials company headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico. The company produces, distributes and sells cement, ready-mix concrete and aggregates, as well as related building materials, to construction markets in more than 50 countries. Cemex’s product portfolio also includes asphalt and mortar mixes, waste-derived fuels and other complementary construction solutions, supported by a network of production facilities, distribution centers and logistics operations.

Founded in 1906 as Cementos Hidalgo, the company adopted the Cemex name in 1976 following a series of domestic mergers and expansions.