Celanese (NYSE:CE) Stock Lifted to Buy by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Celanese (NYSE:CE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Celanese from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Barclays boosted their price target on Celanese from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Celanese in a report on Friday, August 21st. Citigroup raised their price objective on Celanese from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $50.00 price objective on Celanese in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.56.

Celanese Trading Down 2.8%

CE opened at $46.48 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.72. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.37 and its 200-day moving average is $51.45. Celanese has a 52-week low of $35.13 and a 52-week high of $70.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The basic materials company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.62 billion. Celanese had a net margin of 2.66% and a return on equity of 13.63%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.34 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Celanese will post 6.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Celanese Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 27th will be paid a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 27th. Celanese’s dividend payout ratio is 5.06%.

Insider Activity at Celanese

In related news, SVP Mark Murray purchased 2,153 shares of Celanese stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $45.52 per share, with a total value of $98,004.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 30,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,385,264.64. This trade represents a 7.61% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CE. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Celanese in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Celanese by 757.7% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 669 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 591 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its stake in Celanese by 6,975.0% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 849 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Celanese during the second quarter worth $47,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Celanese by 65.5% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,044 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.87% of the company’s stock.

About Celanese

Celanese Corporation (NYSE: CE) is a global chemical and specialty materials company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company develops and manufactures engineered materials and chemical products used by manufacturers in industries including automotive, consumer goods, medical and healthcare, electronics, industrial equipment, energy and infrastructure.

Celanese operates primarily through its Engineered Materials and Acetyl Chain businesses. Its portfolio includes engineered polymers, thermoplastic compounds and other specialty materials, as well as acetyl products such as acetic acid, vinyl acetate monomer, emulsions and related intermediates.