Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on ALB. Weiss Ratings cut Albemarle from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target (down from $185.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Albemarle from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Albemarle from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.05.

Albemarle Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $98.96 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $106.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.47. The company has a market cap of $11.68 billion, a PE ratio of 23.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.34. Albemarle has a fifty-two week low of $89.77 and a fifty-two week high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.05. Albemarle had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 15.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.19) EPS. Albemarle’s quarterly revenue was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post 11.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 18th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently 39.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 30.8% during the 3rd quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,589 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Albemarle by 15,408.6% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 358,715 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,945,000 after buying an additional 356,402 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Albemarle by 1,487.5% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 21,241 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,247,000 after acquiring an additional 19,903 shares during the period. IFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 39.4% during the third quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 1,128 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. Finally, Phoenix Financial Ltd. raised its position in Albemarle by 1,034.0% in the third quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 17,429 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,844,000 after acquiring an additional 15,892 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a specialty chemicals company that produces lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. Its products serve industries including energy storage, transportation, electronics, petroleum refining and pharmaceuticals.

The company supplies lithium compounds used in rechargeable batteries and other applications. It also makes bromine-based products for uses such as flame retardants and water treatment, along with catalysts used in refining petroleum.

Albemarle traces its history to 1887 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.