Short Interest in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Rises By 23.4%

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,690,000 shares, an increase of 23.4% from the October 15th total of 3,800,000 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,060,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

LyondellBasell Industries Trading Up 0.3 %

LYB traded up $0.21 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $82.77. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 647,743 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,863,376. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $91.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.07. LyondellBasell Industries has a 52-week low of $82.20 and a 52-week high of $107.02. The company has a current ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $26.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.65, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.08.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last issued its earnings results 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). LyondellBasell Industries had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 17.05%. The company had revenue of $10.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.46 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that LyondellBasell Industries will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on LYB shares. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of LyondellBasell Industries to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com upgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $94.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $101.00 to $97.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.70.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LyondellBasell Industries

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 211.9% in 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 purchasing an additional 871,708 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 28.9% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,675,701 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $273,671,000 after buying an additional 600,554 shares during the period. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP bought a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the 1st quarter valued at $61,327,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 13.6% during the 2nd 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $769,500,000 after purchasing an additional 362,671 shares during the last quarter. 71.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LyondellBasell Industries

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.