LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised its price target on LyondellBasell to $75 (from $50) while keeping a "neutral" rating, a target that implies only about a 1.23% upside from the stock's current level.
• Analyst coverage is mixed: the consensus average rating is "Hold" with an average target of $74.76, though firms range from Goldman Sachs' "sell" to KeyCorp's upgrade to "overweight" and higher targets from BMO and others.
• LyondellBasell reported Q1 EPS of $0.49 (beating the $0.31 estimate) while revenue of $7.20B missed expectations and fell 6.3% year-over-year; the stock trades near $74 and a major shareholder sold 384,548 shares in March.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $50.00 to $75.00 in a research note issued on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price would indicate a potential upside of 1.23% from the company's current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on LYB. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $68.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $52.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $73.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $74.76.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE LYB opened at $74.09 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.03. LyondellBasell Industries has a 1 year low of $41.58 and a 1 year high of $83.94. The firm has a market cap of $23.91 billion, a PE ratio of -29.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.26 and a beta of 0.32.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.18. LyondellBasell Industries had a negative net margin of 2.68% and a positive return on equity of 5.68%. The firm had revenue of $7.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.33 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that LyondellBasell Industries will post 5.44 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other LyondellBasell Industries news, major shareholder Ai Investments Holdings Llc sold 384,548 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.13, for a total transaction of $26,199,255.24. Following the sale, the insider owned 5,270,918 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $359,107,643.34. This represents a 6.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Castleview Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 34.9% during the 1st quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 6,980 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 1,806 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the first quarter worth approximately $271,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 21.2% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 31,503 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,538,000 after buying an additional 5,501 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 257.7% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 446,642 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $36,033,000 after buying an additional 321,782 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,118,000. 71.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LyondellBasell Industries

LyondellBasell Industries N.V. NYSE: LYB is a global chemical company headquartered in Houston, Texas, that specializes in the production of polyolefins and advanced polymers. Through its extensive portfolio, the company supplies raw materials for a wide range of end markets, including packaging, automotive, construction, electronics and consumer goods. By combining proprietary process technologies with expertise in catalysts, LyondellBasell aims to deliver value-added solutions that enhance product performance and sustainability.

The company's integrated operations encompass the manufacture of olefins and polyolefins, advanced polymer products, chemical intermediates and refining activities.

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