Aquatic Capital Management LLC Has $16.10 Million Holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC grew its position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 294.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 187,072 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 139,672 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC owned 0.16% of Albemarle worth $16,103,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 71.5% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 14,948 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,287,000 after purchasing an additional 6,234 shares in the last quarter. Bristlecone Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 20.5% during the 4th quarter. Bristlecone Advisors LLC now owns 28,824 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,481,000 after acquiring an additional 4,899 shares during the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Albemarle by 172.1% in the 4th quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,405 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $554,000 after acquiring an additional 4,051 shares during the period. Leibman Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 50.5% during the fourth quarter. Leibman Financial Services Inc. now owns 38,964 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,354,000 after acquiring an additional 13,075 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Beech Hill Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth $1,952,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.8 %

ALB stock opened at $57.73 on Friday. Albemarle Co. has a 1-year low of $49.43 and a 1-year high of $137.50. The stock has a market cap of $6.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.15 and a beta of 1.59. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $68.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $85.71. 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 (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.72% and a negative net margin of 21.93%. Analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -14.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ALB shares. UBS Group lowered their target price on Albemarle from $86.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Clarkson Capital initiated coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $112.00 target price for the company. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered shares of Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $96.05.

Albemarle 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.