Merrion Investment Management Co LLC Takes Position in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Merrion Investment Management Co LLC purchased a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 6,775 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $503,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,202,118 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,170,183,000 after buying an additional 230,327 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,023,982 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $769,500,000 after buying an additional 362,671 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,605,151 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $638,964,000 after buying an additional 277,108 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,229,416 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $501,501,000 after buying an additional 187,150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,875,267 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $268,664,000 after buying an additional 293,622 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.20% of the company’s stock.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Performance

LYB opened at $77.89 on Thursday. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $76.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $87.56. LyondellBasell Industries has a 1 year low of $72.21 and a 1 year high of $107.02. The stock has a market cap of $25.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.85, a P/E/G ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 1.06.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.98 by ($0.10). LyondellBasell Industries had a net margin of 5.29% and a return on equity of 17.05%. The firm had revenue of $10.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.48 earnings per share for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.88%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 81.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on LYB. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LyondellBasell Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Mizuho dropped their target price 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $94.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $100.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $104.00 to $92.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LyondellBasell Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $94.33.

Insider Activity at LyondellBasell Industries

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