LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Rating Lowered to Sector Perform at Royal Bank of Canada

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) was downgraded by research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $62.00 price objective on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price target points to a potential upside of 14.25% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $60.00 price target (down from $80.00) on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research report on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $51.00 target price (down from $76.00) on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a report on Monday. StockNews.com cut shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.50.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Down 9.3 %

NYSE LYB opened at $54.27 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. LyondellBasell Industries has a 52 week low of $51.11 and a 52 week high of $107.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.11, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a fifty day moving average of $71.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.72.

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

Insider Activity at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, Director Michael Sean Hanley bought 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $72.05 per share, with a total value of $270,187.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 16,028 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,154,817.40. The trade was a 30.54 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,229,416 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $501,501,000 after acquiring an additional 187,150 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 202.4% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 12,986 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $964,000 after purchasing an additional 8,691 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 271,626 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $20,174,000 after acquiring an additional 20,310 shares in the last quarter. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries in the fourth quarter valued at $503,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 26.4% in the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,973 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,409,000 after buying an additional 3,958 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.