Janus Henderson Group PLC Sells 12,751 Shares of Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Janus Henderson Group PLC decreased its holdings in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 9.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,125 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 12,751 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $21,030,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Albemarle by 25.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 654 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 26.2% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $346,000 after purchasing an additional 996 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in Albemarle in the first quarter valued at about $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle in the first quarter valued at about $411,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 536.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of ALB opened at $118.54 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $141.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.76 and a beta of 1.33. Albemarle Corporation has a 52 week low of $66.67 and a 52 week high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.07.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.18) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. This is an increase from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -47.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ALB shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $166.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group increased their price target on Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Argus boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,078,990.68. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

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.