Banco Santander S.A. Has $3.23 Million Holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Banco Santander S.A. decreased its position in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 19.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,095 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 8,087 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $3,229,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 239.7% in the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 53,793 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,138,000 after acquiring an additional 37,958 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 28.7% during the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 705,719 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $66,839,000 after buying an additional 157,319 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC boosted its position in Albemarle by 392.6% in the 2nd quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 7,916 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $756,000 after buying an additional 6,309 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 32.4% in the 3rd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 521,537 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,395,000 after buying an additional 127,549 shares during the period. Finally, Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 8.0% during the second quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC now owns 123,436 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $11,791,000 after acquiring an additional 9,182 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ALB. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $128.00 to $103.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Berenberg Bank cut Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $160.00 to $83.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $135.00 to $126.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $114.47.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $109.09 on Friday. Albemarle Co. has a one year low of $71.97 and a one year high of $153.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.44 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The firm has a market cap of $12.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.51 and a beta of 1.55. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $97.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $99.62.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently -9.67%.

About Albemarle

Albemarle Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets engineered specialty chemicals worldwide. It operates through three segments: Energy Storage, Specialties and Ketjen. The Energy Storage segment offers lithium compounds, including lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide, and lithium chloride; technical services for the handling and use of reactive lithium products; and lithium-containing by-products recycling services.