HB Wealth Management LLC Reduces Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

HB Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 8.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 402,083 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 38,525 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $56,871,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ALB. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle during the third quarter valued at approximately $138,723,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 22,047.4% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 713,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $44,613,000 after purchasing an additional 710,589 shares during the period. Samlyn Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the third quarter worth $47,088,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the third quarter worth $41,239,000. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 60.9% in the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 784,083 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $49,138,000 after purchasing an additional 296,861 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Albemarle

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total transaction of $2,012,654.23. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 134,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,995,808.68. The trade was a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB stock opened at $194.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $22.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -33.79, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.43. The company’s 50 day moving average is $175.35 and its 200 day moving average is $147.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Albemarle Corporation has a 52-week low of $53.70 and a 52-week high of $215.71.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.53) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.40) by ($0.13). Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($1.09) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 8.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently -28.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Albemarle from $216.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $188.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $176.32.

About Albemarle

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company’s bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world’s foremost chemical producers.