Celanese (NYSE:CE) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE) shares saw strong trading volume on Monday . 553,738 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 40% from the previous session’s volume of 921,081 shares.The stock last traded at $73.77 and had previously closed at $73.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Celanese from $132.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Celanese from $140.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Celanese from $163.00 to $122.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Celanese from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Celanese from $150.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.35.

Celanese Trading Down 0.8 %

The business’s 50-day moving average is $121.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.99 billion, a PE ratio of 7.42, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The basic materials company reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.85 by ($0.41). The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.70 billion. Celanese had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.50 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Celanese Co. will post 8.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Celanese Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 30th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 30th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.83%. Celanese’s payout ratio is 28.17%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Celanese by 128.8% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 183 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in Celanese in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Celanese during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Key Financial Inc lifted its position in Celanese by 3,933.3% during the 2nd quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 242 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Celanese in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 98.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.