WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 8,950 Shares of LyondellBasell Industries N.V. $LYB

Key Points

• WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 26.5%, resulting in 24,885 shares valued at approximately $1.44 million.
• Despite a decrease in stock performance, analysis shows an average target price of $63.93 for LyondellBasell, with the stock currently priced at $52.04.
• LyondellBasell announced a quarterly dividend of $1.37 per share, translating to an annual yield of 10.5%, despite a high payout ratio of 711.69%.

WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries N.V. (NYSE:LYB - Free Report) by 26.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,885 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 8,950 shares during the period. WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in LyondellBasell Industries were worth $1,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 657,443 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 10.4% in the first 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 during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 12.7% during the first 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. lifted its position in 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 valued at $316,113,000 after acquiring an additional 509,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 15.7% in the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,105,317 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $289,014,000 after acquiring an additional 557,397 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.20% of the company's stock.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Performance

Shares of LYB traded down $0.92 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $51.09. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,995,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,015,633. The company has a market cap of $16.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.36 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.56. LyondellBasell Industries N.V. has a 52-week low of $47.55 and a 52-week high of $97.60.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) last posted its 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). The business had revenue of $7.66 billion during 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%.LyondellBasell Industries's revenue for the quarter was down 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.24 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were given a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. LyondellBasell Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 711.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on LYB shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Argus downgraded shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $49.00 to $44.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Bank Of America (Bofa) decreased their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $56.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Monday, June 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $63.93.

Insider Activity at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, CEO Peter Z. E. Vanacker sold 20,000 shares of the firm'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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 160,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,590,003.07. This trade represents a 11.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.14% 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.