LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Sets New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) shares reached a new 52-week low on Friday . The stock traded as low as $71.04 and last traded at $71.44, with a volume of 919143 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.69.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on LYB. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $77.00 to $76.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $96.00 to $86.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.25.

LyondellBasell Industries Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $23.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $76.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.30. 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 (NYSE:LYB) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the company posted $1.26 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 129.47%.

Insider Transactions at LyondellBasell Industries

In related news, Director Michael Sean Hanley acquired 3,750 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $72.05 per share, with a total value of $270,187.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,028 shares in the company, valued at $1,154,817.40. This represents a 30.54 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LyondellBasell Industries

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of LYB. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,432 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 108,009 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $10,358,000 after purchasing an additional 8,331 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 17,297 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,659,000 after purchasing an additional 559 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 41,981 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,026,000 after purchasing an additional 3,197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,788 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 851 shares in the last quarter. 71.20% of the stock is currently owned by 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.