Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Sold by Primecap Management Co. CA

Primecap Management Co. CA lowered its stake in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 12.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,349,954 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 484,030 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $288,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in Albemarle by 25.2% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 5,216 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $494,000 after purchasing an additional 1,051 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 3rd quarter valued at $243,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 47.6% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,847 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 1,241 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 18,130 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,717,000 after acquiring an additional 1,531 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 44.2% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 57,833 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $5,477,000 after acquiring an additional 17,736 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Price Performance

Albemarle stock opened at $79.29 on Tuesday. Albemarle Co. has a 52 week low of $67.23 and a 52 week high of $137.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $82.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.32 billion, a PE ratio of -7.08 and a beta of 1.70.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.72% and a negative net margin of 21.93%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.04%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is presently -14.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ALB. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $99.00 to $86.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Clarkson Capital started coverage on shares of Albemarle in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $112.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered shares of Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.30.

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.