Shell Asset Management Co. Decreases Position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Shell Asset Management Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 21.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,425 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,982 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $978,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. MONECO Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Albemarle by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC now owns 4,131 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $597,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the period. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA increased its position in Albemarle by 430.7% in the 4th quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA now owns 43,119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $6,230,000 after acquiring an additional 34,994 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Albemarle by 22.5% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 190,526 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $25,100,000 after acquiring an additional 35,003 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 5,063 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commerce Bank increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 10,667 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,541,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Trading Up 2.0 %

NYSE:ALB opened at $92.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 1.91. Albemarle Co. has a 12 month low of $90.02 and a 12 month high of $215.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.91 billion, a PE ratio of 33.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 1.57. The business’s 50-day moving average is $105.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.83.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 4.02%. The firm’s revenue was down 47.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $10.32 EPS. Research analysts predict that Albemarle Co. will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $0.405 dividend. This is a positive change from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ALB shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $157.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday, May 24th. KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of Albemarle from $159.00 to $151.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $188.00 to $178.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $135.00 target price (down from $150.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $137.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.65.

Insider Activity

In other Albemarle news, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total transaction of $194,950.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,743 shares in the company, valued at $626,882.31. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Albemarle news, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $921,875.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total value of $194,950.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $626,882.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

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.