LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Short Interest Up 18.2% in March

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,130,000 shares, an increase of 18.2% from the March 15th total of 6,880,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,290,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days. Currently, 3.2% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, Director Michael Sean Hanley acquired 3,750 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $72.05 per share, for a total transaction of $270,187.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 16,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,154,817.40. This trade represents a 30.54 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LyondellBasell Industries

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dodge & Cox increased its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 16,965,832 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,260,052,000 after buying an additional 851,365 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,582,119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $637,394,000 after acquiring an additional 558,137 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,804,205 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $512,913,000 after purchasing an additional 199,054 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in LyondellBasell Industries by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,826,318 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $432,721,000 after purchasing an additional 694,055 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,229,416 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $501,501,000 after purchasing an additional 187,150 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.20% of the company’s stock.

LyondellBasell Industries Trading Down 0.9 %

LYB stock traded down $0.50 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $56.27. 3,981,539 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,463,106. LyondellBasell Industries has a 52-week low of $51.11 and a 52-week high of $107.02. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $69.54 and its 200-day moving average is $76.98. The company has a market cap of $18.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.75 EPS 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 posted $1.26 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 129.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LYB. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group restated a “sell” rating and set a $51.00 price target (down previously from $76.00) on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research report on Monday, April 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $84.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 price target (down previously from $80.00) on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LyondellBasell Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.50.

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.