Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE) Shares Sold by Peterson Wealth Services

Peterson Wealth Services lessened its position in shares of Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE) by 20.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 14,983 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,799 shares during the quarter. Peterson Wealth Services’ holdings in Celanese were worth $2,329,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Celanese by 51.0% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 10,152 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 3,431 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Celanese by 6.8% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 5,627 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $804,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its position in shares of Celanese by 5.8% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 14,455 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,065,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Celanese by 1.5% in the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 13,838 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,977,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Finally, Aviva PLC grew its position in shares of Celanese by 12.8% in the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 37,618 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,374,000 after purchasing an additional 4,265 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.87% of the company’s stock.

Celanese Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Celanese stock traded up $0.47 on Thursday, reaching $154.96. The company had a trading volume of 28,149 shares, compared to its average volume of 716,257. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $157.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $143.56. The firm has a market cap of $16.88 billion, a PE ratio of 8.63, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.36. Celanese Co. has a 52-week low of $99.33 and a 52-week high of $172.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.53.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $2.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.59 billion. Celanese had a net margin of 17.92% and a return on equity of 14.61%. Celanese’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Celanese Co. will post 11.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Celanese Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Celanese’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CE. Bank of America lowered shares of Celanese from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $124.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Celanese from $150.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Celanese from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Celanese from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Celanese from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Celanese currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $149.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Thomas Francis Kelly purchased 1,400 shares of Celanese stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $156.69 per share, with a total value of $219,366.00. Following the purchase, the senior vice president now owns 57,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,934,933.87. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, COO Scott A. Richardson sold 2,000 shares of Celanese stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.85, for a total value of $313,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 76,429 shares in the company, valued at $11,987,888.65. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Thomas Francis Kelly acquired 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $156.69 per share, with a total value of $219,366.00. Following the acquisition, the senior vice president now directly owns 57,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,934,933.87. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Celanese Company Profile

Celanese Corporation, a chemical and specialty materials company, manufactures and sells high performance engineered polymers in the United States and internationally. It operates through Engineered Materials and Acetyl Chain. The Engineered Materials segment develops, produces, and supplies specialty polymers for automotive and medical applications, as well as for use in industrial products and consumer electronics.