Zacks Research Downgrades LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) to Strong Sell

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $65.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Alembic Global Advisors raised LyondellBasell Industries to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $58.00 to $53.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $65.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LyondellBasell Industries has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.69.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LYB opened at $44.47 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $50.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.37. LyondellBasell Industries has a 52 week low of $44.40 and a 52 week high of $88.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.30 billion, a PE ratio of 57.76 and a beta of 0.87.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.21. LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 0.74%.The firm had revenue of $7.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, CEO Peter Z. E. Vanacker sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total transaction of $1,071,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 160,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,590,003.07. This trade represents a 11.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LyondellBasell Industries

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV increased its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 177.6% during the 1st quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 408 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. Capital A Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 6,314.3% during the 2nd quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 449 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares during the period. MTM Investment Management LLC bought a new position in LyondellBasell Industries during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new position in LyondellBasell Industries during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in LyondellBasell Industries during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 71.20% of the company’s stock.

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.