Advocate Group LLC Trims Position in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Advocate Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. 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 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on LyondellBasell Industries in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set an “underperform” rating for the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $102.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $107.00 price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $105.00 to $98.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LyondellBasell Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.33.

Insider Activity at LyondellBasell Industries

In other LyondellBasell Industries news, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 9,489 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.92, for a total transaction of $938,651.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 89,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,847,899.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Chukwuemeka A. Oyolu sold 7,084 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.47, for a total value of $711,729.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,770,460.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 9,489 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.92, for a total value of $938,651.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 89,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,847,899.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 80,853 shares of company stock worth $8,077,267. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LyondellBasell Industries Price Performance

Shares of LYB traded down $0.67 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $102.28. 1,962,099 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,592,951. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.19 billion, a PE ratio of 15.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.19. LyondellBasell Industries has a fifty-two week low of $84.80 and a fifty-two week high of $103.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.58.

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

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

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

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.