Celanese (NYSE:CE) Price Target Raised to $65.00

Celanese (NYSE:CE) had its target price raised by Citigroup from $58.00 to $65.00 in a report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on CE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $50.00 price target on Celanese in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Celanese from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Celanese from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Celanese from $57.00 to $54.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Celanese from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Celanese currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.56.

Celanese Trading Down 2.8%

NYSE CE traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $46.48. 1,309,964 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,440,458. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $51.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.33. Celanese has a 52 week low of $35.13 and a 52 week high of $70.70. The stock has a market cap of $5.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 0.72.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The basic materials company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.62 billion. Celanese had a return on equity of 13.72% and a net margin of 2.66%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. Analysts forecast that Celanese will post 6.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Celanese Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 27th will be issued a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 27th. Celanese’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.06%.

Insider Activity

In other Celanese news, SVP Mark Murray purchased 2,153 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $45.52 per share, with a total value of $98,004.56. Following the purchase, the senior vice president owned 30,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,385,264.64. The trade was a 7.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Celanese

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its stake in shares of Celanese by 38.7% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 29,198 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,296,000 after purchasing an additional 8,149 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank increased its stake in Celanese by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 9,174 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $407,000 after buying an additional 926 shares during the period. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in Celanese in the 3rd quarter worth about $245,000. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP lifted its holdings in Celanese by 253,354.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP now owns 27,880 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,250,000 after buying an additional 27,869 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Celanese by 40.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 65,063 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,876,000 after buying an additional 18,609 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.87% of the company’s stock.

Celanese Company Profile

Celanese Corporation (NYSE: CE) is a global chemical and specialty materials company headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company develops and manufactures engineered materials and chemical products used by manufacturers in industries including automotive, consumer goods, medical and healthcare, electronics, industrial equipment, energy and infrastructure.

Celanese operates primarily through its Engineered Materials and Acetyl Chain businesses. Its portfolio includes engineered polymers, thermoplastic compounds and other specialty materials, as well as acetyl products such as acetic acid, vinyl acetate monomer, emulsions and related intermediates.