LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $94.33.

LYB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $97.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $94.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $104.00 to $92.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays lowered their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 6th.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:LYB opened at $77.35 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $77.63 and its 200 day moving average is $88.46. The company has a market cap of $25.12 billion, a PE ratio of 11.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.25. LyondellBasell Industries has a 1 year low of $72.21 and a 1 year high of $107.02.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $10.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.60 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 17.05%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.46 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.8 EPS for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.93%. LyondellBasell Industries’s payout ratio is currently 81.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LyondellBasell Industries news, Director Robin W.T. Buchanan acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $76.06 per share, for a total transaction of $380,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,382,390.50. The trade was a 37.95 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LyondellBasell Industries

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 211.9% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,283,163 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $123,055,000 after acquiring an additional 871,708 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 13.6% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,828,869 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $461,930,000 after purchasing an additional 579,300 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 4.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,023,982 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $769,500,000 after purchasing an additional 362,671 shares during the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 80.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 779,040 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $74,523,000 after buying an additional 347,877 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,875,267 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $268,664,000 after buying an additional 293,622 shares during the last quarter. 71.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LyondellBasell Industries Company Profile

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. operates as a chemical company in the United States, Germany, Mexico, Italy, Poland, France, Japan, China, the Netherlands, and internationally. The company operates in six segments: Olefins and PolyolefinsAmericas; Olefins and PolyolefinsEurope, Asia, International; Intermediates and Derivatives; Advanced Polymer Solutions; Refining; and Technology.