Wealth High Governance Asset Management Ltda. Has $6.42 Million Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Wealth High Governance Asset Management Ltda. decreased its position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 35.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,776 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 19,440 shares during the period. Albemarle makes up 2.3% of Wealth High Governance Asset Management Ltda.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Wealth High Governance Asset Management Ltda.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $6,423,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth about $165,271,000. Phoenix Financial Ltd. acquired a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth approximately $130,415,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Albemarle by 4,338.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 738,430 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $104,444,000 after acquiring an additional 721,793 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 22,047.4% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 713,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $44,613,000 after purchasing an additional 710,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Samlyn Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle in the third quarter worth $47,088,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total value of $3,011,721.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at $16,078,990.68. The trade was a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Albemarle Stock Performance

NYSE:ALB opened at $117.46 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.07. Albemarle Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $64.95 and a fifty-two week high of $221.00. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $142.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $165.76. The company has a market capitalization of $13.85 billion, a PE ratio of -34.45 and a beta of 1.34.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 5.00% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. Albemarle’s quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This is a positive change from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -48.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Zacks Research cut shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Vertical Research raised Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $188.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Berenberg Bank raised their price objective on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.22.

Albemarle Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company’s bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world’s foremost chemical producers.