AGF Management Ltd. Makes New Investment in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

AGF Management Ltd. acquired a new position in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 31,080 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,308,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Amundi raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 3,858,033 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $283,452,000 after acquiring an additional 1,260,913 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $69,115,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 211.9% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,283,163 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $123,055,000 after acquiring an additional 871,708 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,582,119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $637,394,000 after acquiring an additional 558,137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 11.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,875,267 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $268,664,000 after acquiring an additional 293,622 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LYB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $96.00 to $86.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $97.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $88.25.

Insider Activity

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

LyondellBasell Industries Price Performance

Shares of LYB opened at $74.24 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.01 billion, a PE ratio of 17.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.13. LyondellBasell Industries has a 1-year low of $71.81 and a 1-year high of $107.02. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $76.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.97.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 3.39% and a return on equity of 15.97%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 EPS for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 129.47%.

LyondellBasell Industries 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.