Verity & Verity LLC Has $20.27 Million Holdings in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Verity & Verity LLC increased its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Free Report) by 22.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 287,873 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 53,171 shares during the period. LyondellBasell Industries accounts for approximately 1.8% of Verity & Verity LLC's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Verity & Verity LLC owned about 0.09% of LyondellBasell Industries worth $20,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LYB. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 84.9% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 466 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich acquired a new position in LyondellBasell Industries during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 107.6% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 548 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 127.9% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 866 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 223.3% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 928 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $71.00 to $65.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen cut LyondellBasell Industries from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "sell" rating and issued a $51.00 price target (down from $76.00) on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $69.75.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE LYB traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $60.06. 5,098,356 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,828,426. The company's 50-day moving average is $57.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.87. LyondellBasell Industries has a one year low of $51.11 and a one year high of $100.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.83. The company has a market capitalization of $19.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.82.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.03). LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 3.39%. The business had revenue of $7.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.53 earnings per share. LyondellBasell Industries's revenue for the quarter was down 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LyondellBasell Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.37 per share. This is a boost from LyondellBasell Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. LyondellBasell Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 169.14%.

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.