Analysts Set Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE) Target Price at $149.56

Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $149.56.

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Celanese from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Piper Sandler raised Celanese from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Monday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $160.00 target price (up from $135.00) on shares of Celanese in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays downgraded shares of Celanese from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Celanese from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd.

Celanese Price Performance

Celanese stock opened at $159.08 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $17.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.37. Celanese has a one year low of $99.33 and a one year high of $172.16. The business has a fifty day moving average of $159.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.90. 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 for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.59 billion. Celanese had a return on equity of 14.61% and a net margin of 17.92%. The business’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Celanese will post 11.35 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 given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. Celanese’s payout ratio is currently 15.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Celanese

In other news, SVP Thomas Francis Kelly purchased 1,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $156.69 per share, for a total transaction of $219,366.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the senior vice president now owns 57,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,934,933.87. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Celanese news, COO Scott A. Richardson sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.85, for a total transaction of $313,700.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 76,429 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,987,888.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Thomas Francis Kelly purchased 1,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $156.69 per share, with a total value of $219,366.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president now directly owns 57,023 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,934,933.87. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Celanese

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Celanese in the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Celanese in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Celanese by 142.1% during the fourth quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 184 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Celanese by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 188 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC increased its holdings in shares of Celanese by 180.0% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 224 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.87% 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.