IFG Advisory LLC Increases Holdings in Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE)

IFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Celanese Co. (NYSE:CE) by 80.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,013 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 16,515 shares during the quarter. IFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Celanese were worth $5,751,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Celanese by 92.6% during the 1st quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 181 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Celanese by 83.7% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Certified Advisory Corp purchased a new stake in Celanese in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Provence Wealth Management Group purchased a new stake in Celanese in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. 98.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Celanese Price Performance

Shares of CE opened at $169.64 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $18.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.35. Celanese Co. has a twelve month low of $99.33 and a twelve month high of $169.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $152.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.60.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 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 quarter last year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Celanese Co. will post 11.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Celanese Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. Celanese’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.64%.

Insider Transactions at Celanese

In other news, COO Scott A. Richardson sold 2,000 shares of Celanese 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 76,429 shares in the company, valued at $11,987,888.65. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Celanese news, SVP Mark Christopher Murray bought 597 shares of Celanese stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $156.43 per share, with a total value of $93,388.71. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,814,588. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Scott A. Richardson sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.85, for a total transaction of $313,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 76,429 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,987,888.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on CE shares. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. lowered shares of Celanese from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Piper Sandler raised shares of Celanese from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Celanese from $135.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective 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, KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Celanese from $150.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Celanese currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $144.28.

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.