LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Issues Earnings Results

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.17, RTT News reports. LyondellBasell Industries had a net margin of 5.16% and a return on equity of 21.89%. The business had revenue of $9.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Up 2.6 %

LYB traded up $2.57 on Friday, hitting $102.25. The company had a trading volume of 1,464,864 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,910,965. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $100.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.41. LyondellBasell Industries has a 12-month low of $84.80 and a 12-month high of $106.69. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $33.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.19.

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LYB. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Citigroup raised their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $96.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Vertical Research upgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays raised their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on LyondellBasell Industries in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued an “underperform” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, CFO Michael C. Mcmurray sold 16,940 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.84, for a total transaction of $1,708,229.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 88,858 shares in the company, valued at $8,960,440.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Michael C. Mcmurray sold 16,940 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.84, for a total transaction of $1,708,229.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 88,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,960,440.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 29,229 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.19, for a total transaction of $2,899,224.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 91,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,101,476.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 80,853 shares of company stock worth $8,077,267 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.