Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Trading Up 3.2%

Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)’s share price was up 3.2% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $102.56 and last traded at $100.56. Approximately 543,594 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 3,060,494 shares. The stock had previously closed at $97.41.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ALB shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $137.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $112.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.78.

Albemarle Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $117.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $123.08. The company has a market capitalization of $11.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.00, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.09). Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 4.02%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $10.32 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 47.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Albemarle Co. will post 2.07 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.18%.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In related news, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total value of $194,950.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $626,882.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total value of $194,950.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $626,882.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total transaction of $114,251.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,802 shares in the company, valued at $921,875.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Albemarle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter worth $25,000. USCF Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 2,942.9% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 213 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Corp IN acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.