Celanese (NYSE:CE) Price Target Raised to $58.00

Celanese (NYSE:CE) had its price objective raised by UBS Group from $53.00 to $58.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on CE. Mizuho set a $50.00 price objective on Celanese in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Celanese in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Barclays upped their target price on Celanese from $49.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $58.00 price target on shares of Celanese in a research note on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Celanese from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Celanese presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.56.

Celanese Stock Performance

Celanese stock opened at $51.36 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $46.76 and a 200-day moving average of $51.49. The firm has a market cap of $5.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 0.72. Celanese has a 1-year low of $35.13 and a 1-year high of $70.70.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The basic materials company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.09. Celanese had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 2.66%. The company had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.34 earnings per share. Celanese’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Celanese will post 6.13 EPS for the current year.

Celanese Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 27th were paid a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 27th. Celanese’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.06%.

Institutional Trading of Celanese

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CE. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Celanese during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $614,675,000. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Celanese by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,547,744 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $167,565,000 after purchasing an additional 391,204 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Celanese by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 2,437,660 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $108,159,000 after purchasing an additional 326,406 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Celanese by 83.2% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,187,235 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $143,849,000 after purchasing an additional 993,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Celanese during the second quarter valued at approximately $62,580,000. 98.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Celanese Company Profile

Celanese Corporation is a global chemicals and specialty materials company that develops and manufactures engineered polymers and acetyl-based products. Its materials are used in applications across industries including automotive, consumer goods, medical, industrial, paints and coatings, and adhesives. The company’s portfolio includes engineered thermoplastics and other polymers, as well as acetyl products such as acetic acid, vinyl acetate monomer, and related emulsions and derivatives. These materials are used in products ranging from vehicle components and medical devices to packaging, coatings, and construction materials.