Celanese (NYSE:CE) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at KeyCorp

Celanese (NYSE:CE) was upgraded by analysts at KeyCorp to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Zacks reports. KeyCorp also issued estimates for Celanese’s Q3 2026 earnings at $1.56 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.19 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $6.10 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $6.70 EPS.

CE has been the subject of a number of other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $50.00 target price on Celanese in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Celanese from $72.00 to $63.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Celanese from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 20th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Celanese from $57.00 to $54.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Celanese from $72.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.27.

Celanese Stock Up 3.1%

NYSE CE opened at $45.83 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.33. Celanese has a 1-year low of $35.13 and a 1-year high of $70.70. The company has a 50 day moving average of $45.55 and a 200-day moving average of $52.80. The company has a market cap of $5.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.29, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 0.76.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.22. Celanese had a positive return on equity of 13.04% and a negative net margin of 12.04%.The business had revenue of $2.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.44 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Celanese has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.350-1.750 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Celanese will post 5.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Celanese news, SVP Mark Murray purchased 2,153 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $45.52 per share, for a total transaction of $98,004.56. Following the purchase, the senior vice president owned 30,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,385,264.64. This trade represents a 7.61% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Celanese

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Celanese in the second quarter worth about $614,675,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Celanese by 4,519.5% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 5,837,354 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $268,518,000 after purchasing an additional 5,710,991 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Celanese by 1,539.8% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,133,216 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $90,192,000 after purchasing an additional 2,003,127 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in Celanese during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $62,580,000. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Celanese by 24.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,565,556 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $235,312,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076,645 shares in the last quarter. 98.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Celanese

Celanese Corporation is a global chemical and specialty materials company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of products serving diverse industries. The company operates through two primary business segments—Engineered Materials and Acetyl Chain—offering solutions that range from high-performance polymers and specialty additives to industrial chemicals and intermediates. Its engineered materials are used in applications such as automotive components, consumer electronics, medical devices and packaging, while its acetyl derivatives find uses in coatings, adhesives, solvents and personal care products.

In the Engineered Materials segment, Celanese produces a variety of high-performance thermoplastics, polyether-block-amide (PEBA) elastomers and functional additives designed to enhance product durability, thermal resistance and sustainability.