Hsbc Holdings PLC Increases Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 47.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 230,690 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 74,202 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.20% of Albemarle worth $32,655,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter worth about $6,171,000. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth about $1,055,000. Three Seasons Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth about $873,000. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG raised its position in Albemarle by 493.3% in the fourth quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 84,011 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $11,883,000 after acquiring an additional 69,850 shares during the period. Finally, BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. boosted its stake in Albemarle by 181.8% in the fourth quarter. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. now owns 132,250 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $18,705,000 after acquiring an additional 85,320 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,078,990.68. The trade was a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ALB shares. Citigroup raised shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Albemarle from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Berenberg Bank increased their price objective on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Albemarle from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Argus upped their price target on Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $202.54.

Albemarle Stock Down 4.3%

Albemarle stock opened at $149.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $179.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Albemarle Corporation has a 1-year low of $58.60 and a 1-year high of $221.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -43.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.30.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $1.71. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.18) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is -47.51%.

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.