Not a good buy right now for an impatient investor: price is pressing into near-term resistance while the broader trend remains bearish.
Balance-sheet news (Micromax divestiture) is constructive, but fundamentals (Q3 loss) and cautious Street stance keep upside catalysts limited ahead of earnings (2026-02-17).
Best stance today: HOLD/AVOID new longs until CE can reclaim and hold above ~$50 with improving momentum or until post-earnings clarity confirms stabilization.
Technical Analysis
Trend: Bearish structure (SMA_200 > SMA_20 > SMA_5) indicates the primary trend is still down.
Momentum: MACD histogram -0.166 (below zero) but negatively contracting, implying bearish momentum is easing—not yet bullish.
RSI(6) 64.8: neutral-to-slightly warm, not oversold; doesn’t support a “must-buy now” dip entry.
Levels: Pivot 46.32; resistance R1 48.60 and R2 50.00. Pre-market 48.75 is already above R1, increasing rejection risk near 49–50.
Near-term pattern odds (similar candlesticks): modest next-day/week drift but a stronger 1-month upside skew (+11.84%)—more consistent with a swing setup after confirmation than an impatient chase into resistance.
Options Data
Bearish
Open Interest Put-Call Ratio
Bullish
Option Volume Put-Call Ratio
Positioning: OI put/call 1.22 suggests heavier put open interest (more hedging/caution).
Volatility: IV30 ~63 with IV percentile 73.2 (elevated); options are relatively expensive, consistent with uncertainty into upcoming earnings.
Volume context: today’s option volume ~92.6% of 30D avg (not a blowout sentiment extreme).
Technical Summary
Sell
5
Buy
12
Positive Catalysts
2026-02-02: Completed Micromax divestiture for ~$500M cash, explicitly aimed at strengthening the balance sheet and supporting deleveraging.
Potential narrative tailwind: improving leverage metrics could eventually shift valuation framing back toward FCF yield (per Morgan Stanley commentary).
Upcoming earnings (2026-02-17): opportunity for management to update on deleveraging pace and 2026 demand outlook.
Neutral/Negative Catalysts
while longer-term moving averages remain bearish.
Financial Performance
Latest reported quarter: 2025/Q3.
Revenue: $2.419B (-8.65% YoY), showing continued top-line contraction.
Profitability: Net income -$1.357B (down -1300.88% YoY) and EPS -12.39 (down -1302.91% YoY), indicating a materially weakened earnings profile.
Margin: Gross margin 19.8% (-9.47% YoY), pointing to ongoing pressure on pricing/spreads and/or utilization.
Overall: growth trend is negative; the bull case leans more on balance-sheet repair than on accelerating operating momentum today.
Growth
Profitability
Efficiency
Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends
Recent tone: predominantly Neutral/Equal Weight/Sector Perform, with price targets clustered in the mid-to-high $40s/low $50s.
Key changes: Wells Fargo downgraded to Equal Weight (PT $45); Morgan Stanley resumed Equal Weight (PT $50); RBC raised PT to $48 (Sector Perform). Citi remains the notable Buy (PT $56) but has also trimmed targets previously.
Wall Street pros: deleveraging path (asset sale cash) and potential 2026 commercialization themes.
Wall Street cons: trough-like chemical conditions may persist, TiO2-related charges/headwinds, and need for leverage reduction before valuation re-rates.
Influential/congress trading: No recent congress trading data available; hedge funds and insiders show no significant recent trend (both neutral).
Wall Street analysts forecast CE stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for CE is 54.78 USD with a low forecast of 43 USD and a high forecast of 75 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
10 Analyst Rating
Wall Street analysts forecast CE stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for CE is 54.78 USD with a low forecast of 43 USD and a high forecast of 75 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
4 Buy
6 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 52.060
Low
43
Averages
54.78
High
75
Current: 52.060
Low
43
Averages
54.78
High
75
Jefferies
Hold
to
Buy
upgrade
$43 -> $86
AI Analysis
2026-02-05
New
Reason
Jefferies
Price Target
$43 -> $86
AI Analysis
2026-02-05
New
upgrade
Hold
to
Buy
Reason
Jefferies upgraded Celanese to Buy from Hold with a price target of $86, up from $43. While the company's first half of 2026 earnings results are "likely remain choppy," based on peer comments, "it is finally time to buy the dips," the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm says Celanese offers significant operating leverage to a demand cycle. The narrative of weak demand and de-stocking is "finally giving way" to cumulative stimulus in the U.S. and Europe and increasing rationalization and tighter discipline on new projects in the chemical industry, contends Jefferies.
Morgan Stanley
Vincent Andrews
resume
$50
2026-01-20
Reason
Morgan Stanley
Vincent Andrews
Price Target
$50
2026-01-20
resume
Reason
Morgan Stanley analyst Vincent Andrews resumed coverage of Celanese with an Equal Weight rating and $50 price target. The firm believes the company's leverage will need to get at least below three-times before the stock's valuation will shift back towards a free cash flow yield approach.
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