LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Reaches New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $74.34 and last traded at $74.40, with a volume of 173377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $74.80.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LYB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays decreased their price objective on LyondellBasell Industries from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $94.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $96.00 to $86.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $97.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $96.27.

LyondellBasell Industries Trading Down 2.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The company has a market capitalization of $23.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $83.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.55.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $10.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.60 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 17.05% and a net margin of 5.29%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.46 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that LyondellBasell Industries will post 7.02 earnings per share for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.35%. LyondellBasell Industries's payout ratio is currently 81.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Robin W.T. Buchanan acquired 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $76.06 per share, with a total value of $380,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 18,175 shares in the company, valued at $1,382,390.50. The trade was a 37.95 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LyondellBasell Industries

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 6.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 307,496 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $29,489,000 after purchasing an additional 18,311 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 57,021 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,468,000 after buying an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position 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 buying an additional 293,622 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 45.1% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 33,308 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,194,000 after buying an additional 10,359 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 13.1% in the third quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 21,609 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,072,000 after acquiring an additional 2,498 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.20% of the company's stock.

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.