Erste Asset Management GmbH Makes New Investment in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,500 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $506,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle during the third quarter worth $25,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV bought a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. BOKF NA boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares during the period. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 536.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Albemarle

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total value 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. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 3.5%

NYSE ALB opened at $147.41 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.07. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $181.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $166.71. Albemarle Corporation has a twelve month low of $55.90 and a twelve month high of $221.00. The stock has a market cap of $17.38 billion, a PE ratio of -43.23, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -47.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on ALB. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $253.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $203.04.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.