UBS Group Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Celanese (NYSE:CE) Stock Price

Celanese (NYSE:CE) had its price objective decreased by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $60.00 to $46.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. UBS Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 14.27% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also commented on CE. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Celanese from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Piper Sandler reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $48.00 target price (down previously from $50.00) on shares of Celanese in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded Celanese from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Celanese from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $66.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Celanese from $92.00 to $54.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $64.72.

Celanese Price Performance

Shares of CE traded down $0.74 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $40.26. 3,625,227 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,865,015. Celanese has a 52 week low of $36.83 and a 52 week high of $169.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $59.42 and a 200-day moving average of $81.53. The stock has a market cap of $4.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.91, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.08.

Celanese (NYSE:CE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. Celanese had a positive return on equity of 12.86% and a negative net margin of 14.81%. On average, analysts forecast that Celanese will post 8.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CE. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Celanese by 4,300.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 207,892 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $11,802,000 after purchasing an additional 203,168 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Celanese by 317.3% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,348 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,025 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its holdings in shares of Celanese by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 4,850 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its stake in shares of Celanese by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 16,700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Celanese by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 34,950 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,419,000 after purchasing an additional 8,740 shares in the last quarter. 98.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.