Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. Buys 1,587 Shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. grew its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) by 37.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,790 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,587 shares during the period. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co.’s holdings in LyondellBasell Industries were worth $544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries during the third quarter worth $26,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries during the third quarter worth $26,000. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in LyondellBasell Industries during the second quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in LyondellBasell Industries during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. 71.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on LYB. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set an “underperform” rating for the company. Vertical Research upgraded shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of 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 reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $107.00 target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $105.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 29,229 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 91,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,101,476.02. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 29,229 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 91,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,101,476.02. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Chukwuemeka A. Oyolu sold 7,084 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.47, for a total transaction of $711,729.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 27,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,770,460.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 80,853 shares of company stock valued at $8,077,267. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LyondellBasell Industries Trading Down 0.7 %

LYB stock traded down $0.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $102.28. 1,962,099 shares of the company were exchanged, 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 firm has a market capitalization of $33.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.81, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.58. LyondellBasell Industries has a 12-month low of $84.80 and a 12-month high of $103.30.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.33 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $9.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.85 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 21.89% and a net margin of 5.16%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 8.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

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

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.