Celanese (CE) Set to Announce Earnings on Wednesday

Celanese (NYSE:CE) will be posting its quarterly earnings results after the market closes on Wednesday, May 8th. Analysts expect Celanese to post earnings of $1.92 per share for the quarter. Celanese has set its Q1 guidance at $1.75-2.00 EPS and its Q1 2024 guidance at 1.750-2.000 EPS.Investors interested in registering for the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $2.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.29 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.59 billion. Celanese had a net margin of 17.92% and a return on equity of 14.61%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.44 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect Celanese to post $11 EPS for the current fiscal year and $14 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Celanese Stock Up 1.2 %

CE stock opened at $159.08 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $17.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.37. Celanese has a 1-year low of $99.33 and a 1-year high of $172.16. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $159.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Celanese Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. Celanese’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.64%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Thomas Francis Kelly acquired 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $156.69 per share, for a total transaction of $219,366.00. Following the transaction, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Mark Christopher Murray bought 597 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $156.43 per share, with a total value of $93,388.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,814,588. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Thomas Francis Kelly purchased 1,400 shares of Celanese stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $156.69 per share, with a total value of $219,366.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now 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 company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CE shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Celanese from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. lowered Celanese from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $140.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Bank of America downgraded 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 note on Tuesday, January 16th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Celanese from $135.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Celanese from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $149.56.

About Celanese

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.