Advocate Group LLC Cuts Holdings in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Advocate Group LLC cut its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 49,577 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 653 shares during the quarter. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in LyondellBasell Industries were worth $4,714,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LYB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 250.7% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,331,930 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $406,726,000 after purchasing an additional 3,096,710 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 205.3% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,454,483 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $458,010,000 after acquiring an additional 2,995,335 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 170.5% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,331,033 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $276,576,000 after acquiring an additional 2,099,644 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 490.9% in the second quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,464,618 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $134,495,000 after acquiring an additional 1,216,737 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 35.5% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,571,985 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $339,624,000 after purchasing an additional 935,430 shares during the period. 71.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock traded down $0.67 during trading on Friday, hitting $102.28. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,962,099 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,592,951. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.84. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.58. The company has a market capitalization of $33.19 billion, a PE ratio of 15.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.19. LyondellBasell Industries has a 52 week low of $84.80 and a 52 week high of $103.30.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $9.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.85 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a net margin of 5.16% and a return on equity of 21.89%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.29 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 8.81 earnings per share for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.89%. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on LYB shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $105.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $102.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Vertical Research raised shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 29,229 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.19, for a total value of $2,899,224.51. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 91,758 shares in the company, valued at $9,101,476.02. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 29,229 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.19, for a total value of $2,899,224.51. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 91,758 shares in the company, valued at $9,101,476.02. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robin W.T. Buchanan sold 18,111 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.46, for a total transaction of $1,819,431.06. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,233,246.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 80,853 shares of company stock worth $8,077,267. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

LyondellBasell Industries 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.