LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) Short Interest Up 15.0% in August

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) was the target of a large growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,290,000 shares, a growth of 15.0% from the August 15th total of 3,730,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,630,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days. Currently, 1.7% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LYB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI upgraded LyondellBasell Industries to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on LyondellBasell Industries from $113.00 to $110.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $106.00 to $101.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of LyondellBasell Industries from $117.00 to $110.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $107.27.

LyondellBasell Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LYB traded up $0.91 on Tuesday, reaching $94.99. 1,160,339 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,768,823. LyondellBasell Industries has a fifty-two week low of $88.46 and a fifty-two week high of $107.02. The business’s 50-day moving average is $96.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.68, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.07.

LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.01. LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 18.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The company had revenue of $10.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.44 earnings per share. LyondellBasell Industries’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that LyondellBasell Industries will post 8 EPS for the current year.

LyondellBasell Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were given a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.64%. LyondellBasell Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Heritage Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in LyondellBasell Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in LyondellBasell Industries during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Beacon Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of LyondellBasell Industries by 311.0% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 300 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. 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.