On Dec 30, 2015, we issued an updated research report on chemicals and polymers maker LyondellBasell Industries LYB.
LyondellBasell continues to benefit from the favorable North American natural gas environment and is executing its expansion projects to leverage the U.S. natural gas liquids (NGLs) advantage. Moreover, the company has already completed an 800-million pound per year expansion at its La Porte site and a 250-million pound per year expansion at the Channelview facility. Further, the addition of 800 million pounds of capacity at the Corpus Christi plant is anticipated to be completed by second-quarter 2016.
LyondellBasell also remains on track with its multi-plant ethylene expansion programs across the Channelview, La Porte and Corpus Christi facilities in Texas which benefit from shale gas production. It is further advancing plans to construct a world-scale plant on the U.S. Gulf Coast for producing propylene oxide (“PO”) and tertiary butyl alcohol (“TBA”), leveraging the shale gas boom in the region. The new PO/TBA facility, considered to be the largest of its kind, will be built in the Houston area.
The company is also pursuing its growth strategy by expanding its competitive position in lucrative markets. As part of this plan, the company acquired India-based polypropylene compounds maker – SJS Plastiblends Pvt. Ltd.
The acquisition expands LyondellBasell's foothold in India and further reinforces its position in the country’s growing automotive plastics market. LyondellBasell also agreed to purchase the polypropylene compounding assets of India-based Zylog Plastalloys Pvt. Ltd., which will allow it to double its automotive customer base in India.
LyondellBasell is a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock.
Other Stocks to Consider
Other favorably ranked companies in the chemical space include Stepan Company SCL, Innospec Inc. IOSP, and PPG Industries, Inc. PPG. While Stepan sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), both Innospec and PPG Industries hold a Zacks Rank #2.
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Be the first to comment