Virtu Financial LLC Cuts Stake in LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB)

Virtu Financial LLC reduced its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) by 25.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,110 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 7,385 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in LyondellBasell Industries were worth $1,568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp increased its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 1.9% during 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 period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,582,119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $637,394,000 after buying an additional 558,137 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 4.4% during 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 period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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 valued at $501,501,000 after purchasing an additional 187,150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 48.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 3,858,033 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $283,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260,913 shares during the last quarter. 71.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at LyondellBasell Industries

In other news, Director Michael Sean Hanley bought 3,750 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $72.05 per share, for a total transaction of $270,187.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 16,028 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,154,817.40. The trade was a 30.54 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $95.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $88.25.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:LYB opened at $71.57 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $76.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.02. 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 $70.75 and a 1-year high of $107.02.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 3.39%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that LyondellBasell Industries will post 6.31 EPS for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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.