Brokerages Set LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE:LYB) Price Target at $64.44

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE:LYB) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-three ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, fourteen have assigned a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $65.6111.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group upgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $48.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $51.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wolfe Research lowered their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LYB opened at $76.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $59.10 and a 200 day moving average of $51.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The company has a market capitalization of $24.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -32.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.64. LyondellBasell Industries has a 52 week low of $41.58 and a 52 week high of $77.36.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.44). LyondellBasell Industries had a negative net margin of 2.46% and a positive return on equity of 4.93%. The company had revenue of $7.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.75 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LyondellBasell Industries Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -118.45%.

Insider Transactions at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, major shareholder Ai Investments Holdings Llc sold 384,548 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.13, for a total transaction of $26,199,255.24. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,270,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $359,107,643.34. This represents a 6.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cooper Financial Group raised its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 4.3% in the third quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 5,146 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $252,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Investment Research Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Investment Research Partners LLC now owns 5,100 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 2.5% during the third quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,345 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $458,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 1.4% during the third quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,020 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $884,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 97.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 534 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. 71.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LyondellBasell Industries Company Profile

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE: LYB) is a global chemical company headquartered in Houston, Texas, that specializes in the production of polyolefins and advanced polymers. Through its extensive portfolio, the company supplies raw materials for a wide range of end markets, including packaging, automotive, construction, electronics and consumer goods. By combining proprietary process technologies with expertise in catalysts, LyondellBasell aims to deliver value-added solutions that enhance product performance and sustainability.

The company’s integrated operations encompass the manufacture of olefins and polyolefins, advanced polymer products, chemical intermediates and refining activities.