Foster & Motley Inc. Lowers Position in LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE:LYB)

Key Points

• Foster & Motley Inc. reduced its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 8.2%, now holding 48,279 shares valued at approximately $3.4 million.
• Other hedge funds significantly increased their positions, with Pacer Advisors Inc. lifting its stake by an impressive 3,502.2%, owning over 2 million shares worth nearly $142 million.
• LyondellBasell recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.37 per share, reflecting a dividend yield of 9.30%, despite a high payout ratio of 169.14%.

Foster & Motley Inc. cut its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE:LYB - Free Report) by 8.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 48,279 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 4,321 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.'s holdings in LyondellBasell Industries were worth $3,399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LYB. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 65,457 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $4,608,000 after acquiring an additional 5,571 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 41.5% in the 1st quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,460 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 1,307 shares during the period. Dearborn Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 43.2% in the 1st quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 8,030 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $565,000 after acquiring an additional 2,421 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $299,000. Finally, Cincinnati Insurance Co. raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Cincinnati Insurance Co. now owns 785,666 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $55,311,000 after acquiring an additional 41,000 shares during the period. 71.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LYB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $72.00 to $62.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $58.00 to $56.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $65.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $81.00 to $65.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $66.00.

LyondellBasell Industries Trading Down 7.8%

Shares of NYSE LYB traded down $4.52 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $53.41. 10,553,832 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,901,283. The company has a market capitalization of $17.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.85. LyondellBasell Industries N.V. has a 52-week low of $51.11 and a 52-week high of $99.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $60.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.35.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 firm 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 13.19% and a net margin of 2.81%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.24 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that LyondellBasell Industries N.V. will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LyondellBasell Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a $1.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This is a positive change from LyondellBasell Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.3%. LyondellBasell Industries's payout ratio is presently 169.14%.

LyondellBasell Industries 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.