LPL Financial LLC Raises Stake in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 576,116 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,422 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.18% of LyondellBasell Industries worth $42,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,635,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 121,075 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $8,993,000 after purchasing an additional 10,833 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 46.0% in the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 24,624 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,829,000 after purchasing an additional 7,760 shares in the last quarter. Sciencast Management LP bought a new position in LyondellBasell Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $994,000. Finally, Lingohr Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $542,000. 71.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on LYB shares. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $97.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $96.00 to $86.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $88.25.

Insider Transactions at LyondellBasell Industries

In related news, Director Michael Sean Hanley purchased 3,750 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $72.05 per share, with a total value of $270,187.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 16,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,154,817.40. This represents a 30.54 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of LYB opened at $69.81 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The business has a fifty day moving average of $75.58 and a 200 day moving average of $81.28. The company has a market cap of $22.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.06. LyondellBasell Industries has a 52-week low of $69.74 and a 52-week high of $107.02.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.53). LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 3.39%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.26 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 EPS for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.68%. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 129.47%.

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.