The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Cuts Position in LyondellBasell Industries N.V. $LYB

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company sold 735,900 shares of LyondellBasell Industries, reducing its stake by 60.6%, leaving it with 478,172 shares worth approximately $33.6 million.
• Several institutional investors increased their holdings in LyondellBasell, with notable increases by Ameriprise Financial Inc. and AXA S.A., indicating growing interest in the specialty chemicals company.
• LyondellBasell's stock has seen recent downgrades from analysts, with price targets cut by firms such as UBS Group and BMO Capital Markets, reflecting a cautious outlook on the company’s performance.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE:LYB - Free Report) by 60.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 478,172 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 735,900 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.15% of LyondellBasell Industries worth $33,663,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LYB. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 7.7% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,239,562 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $650,465,000 after buying an additional 657,443 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position 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 valued at $452,852,000 after acquiring an additional 606,234 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 4,744,239 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $333,994,000 after purchasing an additional 534,456 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 12.8% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,490,241 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $316,113,000 after purchasing an additional 509,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 207.8% in the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 2,254,589 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $167,448,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,043 shares in the last quarter. 71.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Argus lowered LyondellBasell Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Citigroup reduced their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $56.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on 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. Bank Of America (Bofa) reduced their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $56.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $63.08.

LyondellBasell Industries Price Performance

Shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock traded up $0.74 on Friday, hitting $55.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,225,031 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,036,538. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.77. LyondellBasell Industries N.V. has a 1 year low of $47.55 and a 1 year high of $97.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $58.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $61.34. The company has a market capitalization of $17.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.48 and a beta of 0.85.

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

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th were issued a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. LyondellBasell Industries's payout ratio is presently 711.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, CEO Peter Z. E. Vanacker sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total transaction of $1,071,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 160,351 shares in the company, valued at $8,590,003.07. The trade was a 11.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.