Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $81.37 Million Stake in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 14.0% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 602,617 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 73,815 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $81,371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,630,394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $230,603,000 after acquiring an additional 207,770 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,263,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $102,464,000 after purchasing an additional 22,856 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,241,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $175,542,000 after purchasing an additional 453,881 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at about $165,271,000. Finally, Phoenix Financial Ltd. bought a new position in Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at about $130,415,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE:ALB opened at $131.29 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $136.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $163.79. Albemarle Corporation has a 52-week low of $71.25 and a 52-week high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.09. The company has a market cap of $15.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 486.28 and a beta of 1.33.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 3.09%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.11 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.73 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.41 dividend. This is a positive change from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 600.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $245.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Berenberg Bank boosted their target price on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. UBS Group decreased their price target on Albemarle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Albemarle from $236.00 to $224.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.26.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was 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 directly owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at $16,078,990.68. This trade represents a 15.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.