LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Stake Lessened by Gateway Investment Advisers LLC

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC trimmed its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 156,299 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 2,928 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in LyondellBasell Industries were worth $11,608,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position 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 buying an additional 871,708 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 13.6% in 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. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,023,982 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $769,500,000 after purchasing an additional 362,671 shares during the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 80.7% during the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 779,040 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $74,523,000 after purchasing an additional 347,877 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 11.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,875,267 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $268,664,000 after purchasing an additional 293,622 shares during the period. 71.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $97.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $94.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LyondellBasell Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.33.

LyondellBasell Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LYB opened at $76.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 2.13. The company has a market capitalization of $24.90 billion, a PE ratio of 11.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.06. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $78.00 and a 200-day moving average of $88.66. LyondellBasell Industries has a one year low of $72.21 and a one year high of $107.02.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.98 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $10.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.60 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 17.05%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.46 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.99%. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 81.58%.

Insider Activity at LyondellBasell Industries

In other LyondellBasell Industries news, Director Robin W.T. Buchanan bought 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $76.06 per share, with a total value of $380,300.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 18,175 shares in the company, valued at $1,382,390.50. The trade was a 37.95 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.