LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) Competitors

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) and LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) are related large-cap companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability and media sentiment.

Do analysts recommend CAT or LYB?

Caterpillar currently has a consensus target price of $457.20, suggesting a potential upside of 5.95%. LyondellBasell Industries has a consensus target price of $63.08, suggesting a potential upside of 13.68%. Given LyondellBasell Industries' higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe LyondellBasell Industries is more favorable than Caterpillar.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Caterpillar	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	11 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.83
LyondellBasell Industries	2 Sell rating(s)	9 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.14

Which has more risk & volatility, CAT or LYB?

Caterpillar has a beta of 1.41, indicating that its stock price is 41% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, LyondellBasell Industries has a beta of 0.85, indicating that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media refer more to CAT or LYB?

In the previous week, Caterpillar had 30 more articles in the media than LyondellBasell Industries. MarketBeat recorded 52 mentions for Caterpillar and 22 mentions for LyondellBasell Industries. LyondellBasell Industries' average media sentiment score of 1.63 beat Caterpillar's score of 1.36 indicating that LyondellBasell Industries is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Caterpillar	47 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	2 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
LyondellBasell Industries	21 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Is CAT or LYB more profitable?

Caterpillar has a net margin of 14.95% compared to LyondellBasell Industries' net margin of 0.74%. Caterpillar's return on equity of 48.95% beat LyondellBasell Industries' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Caterpillar	14.95%	48.95%	10.60%
LyondellBasell Industries	0.74%	9.35%	3.28%

Which has preferable valuation and earnings, CAT or LYB?

Caterpillar has higher revenue and earnings than LyondellBasell Industries. Caterpillar is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than LyondellBasell Industries, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Caterpillar	$64.81B	3.12	$10.79B	$19.66	21.95
LyondellBasell Industries	$40.30B	0.44	$1.37B	$0.77	72.06

Is CAT or LYB a better dividend stock?

Caterpillar pays an annual dividend of $6.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. LyondellBasell Industries pays an annual dividend of $5.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 9.9%. Caterpillar pays out 30.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. LyondellBasell Industries pays out 711.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Caterpillar has raised its dividend for 30 consecutive years and LyondellBasell Industries has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years.

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of CAT or LYB?

71.0% of Caterpillar shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.2% of LyondellBasell Industries shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Caterpillar shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of LyondellBasell Industries shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Caterpillar beats LyondellBasell Industries on 15 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.