Celanese (NYSE:CE) Hits New 12-Month Low on Disappointing Earnings

Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $98.01 and last traded at $99.00, with a volume of 541754 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $123.50.

The basic materials company reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.85 by ($0.41). Celanese had a return on equity of 13.60% and a net margin of 18.24%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Celanese Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 30th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 30th. Celanese’s payout ratio is currently 15.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Celanese from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $115.00 in a report on Tuesday. Barclays decreased their price objective on Celanese from $170.00 to $151.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Celanese from $167.00 to $163.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Celanese from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Celanese from $193.00 to $184.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Celanese currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.00.

Insider Activity at Celanese

In related news, COO Scott A. Richardson sold 4,675 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.51, for a total value of $605,459.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 69,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,033,840.54. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aigen Investment Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Celanese by 34.7% in the third quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 14,920 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,029,000 after buying an additional 3,845 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Celanese by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 21,730 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,954,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Celanese by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 243,137 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,057,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Celanese by 76.7% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,297 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $176,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the period. Finally, Kerusso Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Celanese by 6.4% in the third quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC now owns 21,702 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,951,000 after buying an additional 1,303 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.87% of the company’s stock.

Celanese Stock Down 26.3 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $128.78 and a 200-day moving average of $137.81. The company has a market cap of $9.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

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.