Rhumbline Advisers Purchases 36,303 Shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) by 7.8% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 500,901 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 36,303 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in LyondellBasell Industries were worth $35,263,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 84.9% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 466 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 107.6% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 548 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 127.9% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 866 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in LyondellBasell Industries by 110.2% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,171 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.20% of the company’s stock.

LyondellBasell Industries Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock opened at $56.05 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.01 billion, a PE ratio of 13.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.82. LyondellBasell Industries has a 1-year low of $51.11 and a 1-year high of $100.46. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $58.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.03. 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 (NYSE:LYB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $7.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.69 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a net margin of 3.39% and a return on equity of 15.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $1.37 dividend. This is an increase from LyondellBasell Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.34. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. LyondellBasell Industries’s payout ratio is currently 169.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on LYB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $81.00 to $65.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group restated a “sell” rating and issued a $51.00 target price (down previously from $76.00) on shares of LyondellBasell Industries in a report on Monday, April 7th. Argus cut shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $71.00 to $65.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LyondellBasell Industries has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at LyondellBasell Industries

In related news, Director Michael Sean Hanley purchased 3,750 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $72.05 per share, for a total transaction of $270,187.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 16,028 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,154,817.40. The trade was a 30.54% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.