Empirical Finance LLC Buys Shares of 5,620 LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Empirical Finance LLC purchased a new position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 5,620 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $417,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC increased its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 14.0% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 8,360 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $802,000 after buying an additional 1,025 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,939 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $570,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 57.1% during the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 4,002 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $384,000 after purchasing an additional 1,454 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 7.8% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 4,024 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the period. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 1,171.9% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,132 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,043 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.20% of the company’s stock.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Performance

LYB stock opened at $76.41 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.28. The company has a market capitalization of $24.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.46, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. LyondellBasell Industries has a fifty-two week low of $72.21 and a fifty-two week high of $107.02.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.53). LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 3.39%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.01%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 129.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group cut their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $77.00 to $76.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and set a $95.00 price objective (down from $112.00) on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.17.

Insider Transactions at LyondellBasell Industries

In other LyondellBasell Industries news, Director Robin W.T. Buchanan bought 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $76.06 per share, for a total transaction of $380,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 18,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,382,390.50. This trade represents a 37.95 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.11% 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.