Securian Asset Management Inc. Trims Stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Securian Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,199 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $534,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 340.6% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. First Community Trust NA raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% in the fourth quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on ALB. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Albemarle from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Albemarle from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Albemarle from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.30.

Albemarle Trading Up 5.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $79.29 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.32 billion, a PE ratio of -7.08 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Albemarle Co. has a 12-month low of $67.23 and a 12-month high of $137.50. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.33.

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

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently -14.46%.

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.