M&T Bank Corp Acquires 1,757 Shares of Celanese Corporation (NYSE:CE)

M&T Bank Corp increased its position in Celanese Corporation (NYSE:CE) by 31.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,293 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,757 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Celanese were worth $414,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its holdings in Celanese by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 20,823 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,182,000 after buying an additional 1,719 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Celanese by 335.8% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 543,042 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,828,000 after acquiring an additional 418,446 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in Celanese by 166.8% in the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 25,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,419,000 after acquiring an additional 15,630 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in Celanese in the first quarter valued at about $907,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in Celanese by 127.0% in the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 622 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.87% of the company’s stock.

Celanese Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CE opened at $56.92 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.74, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.14. Celanese Corporation has a 12 month low of $36.29 and a 12 month high of $147.86. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $55.70 and its 200 day moving average is $56.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.26 billion. Celanese had a negative net margin of 16.54% and a positive return on equity of 11.28%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.08 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Celanese Corporation will post 8.79 EPS for the current year.

Celanese Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 29th will be issued a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.21%. Celanese’s payout ratio is presently -0.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on CE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Celanese from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Celanese from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets raised Celanese from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $46.00 to $55.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Barclays raised their price target on Celanese from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $63.00 price target (up from $53.00) on shares of Celanese in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Celanese currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $66.50.

Insider Activity at Celanese

In related news, SVP Mark Christopher Murray purchased 1,479 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $52.18 per share, for a total transaction of $77,174.22. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president owned 15,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $807,120.24. This trade represents a 10.57% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

About Celanese

Celanese Corporation, a chemical and specialty materials company, manufactures and sells high performance engineered polymers in the United States and internationally. It operates through Engineered Materials and Acetyl Chain. The Engineered Materials segment develops, produces, and supplies specialty polymers for automotive and medical applications, as well as for use in industrial products and consumer electronics.