Natixis Advisors LLC Boosts Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 58.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 231,492 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 84,981 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $32,742,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 25.5% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 654 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 26.2% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $346,000 after buying an additional 996 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in Albemarle in the 1st quarter worth about $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Albemarle in the 1st quarter worth about $411,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 536.7% in the 2nd 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,078,990.68. This trade represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 1.5%

ALB stock opened at $165.73 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $184.05 and a 200 day moving average of $165.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.54 billion, a PE ratio of -48.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Albemarle Corporation has a 52 week low of $55.90 and a 52 week high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 5.00% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. Albemarle’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.18) EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.39 earnings per share 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -47.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on ALB shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $203.04.

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.