Citigroup Issues Pessimistic Forecast for LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citigroup has lowered its target price for LyondellBasell Industries from $53.00 to $49.00, indicating a "neutral" rating and suggesting a modest potential upside of 0.74% from the current stock price.
• Multiple analysts have recently cut their target prices on LyondellBasell, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $63.73.
• The company reported disappointing earnings results, missing EPS estimates with a figure of $0.62, while also noting a significant decline in revenue year-over-year.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by research analysts at Citigroup from $53.00 to $49.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock. Citigroup's price objective points to a potential upside of 0.74% from the stock's current price.

LYB has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $64.00 to $54.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $60.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, LyondellBasell Industries currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $63.73.

LyondellBasell Industries Price Performance

Shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $48.64. The stock had a trading volume of 1,248,133 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,038,562. The stock's 50 day moving average is $54.00 and its 200 day moving average is $58.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.65 billion, a PE ratio of 63.17 and a beta of 0.87. LyondellBasell Industries has a twelve month low of $47.55 and a twelve month high of $96.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.25). The company had revenue of $7.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.58 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 0.74%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.24 EPS. Equities analysts expect that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, CEO Peter Z. E. Vanacker sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total value of $1,071,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 160,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,590,003.07. This represents a 11.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LyondellBasell Industries

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dodge & Cox lifted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 16,969,997 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $981,884,000 after acquiring an additional 73,965 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,915,151 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $747,271,000 after buying an additional 514,057 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,476,600 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $548,316,000 after buying an additional 237,038 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,824,462 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $395,486,000 after buying an additional 24,161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,432,552 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $452,852,000 after buying an additional 606,234 shares in the last quarter. 71.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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