Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Sold by Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC

Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 27.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,849 shares during the quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $414,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 38.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,020,590 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $96,660,000 after purchasing an additional 282,194 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in Albemarle by 28.7% in 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 during the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC grew its holdings 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 period. Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 32.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 521,537 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $49,395,000 after acquiring an additional 127,549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 28.5% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 423,049 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $40,067,000 after acquiring an additional 93,718 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Price Performance

ALB stock opened at $86.09 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $96.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.49. Albemarle Co. has a 52-week low of $71.97 and a 52-week high of $143.19. The company has a market capitalization of $10.12 billion, a PE ratio of -5.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. This trade represents a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ALB. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $79.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $114.71.

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.