Gateway Investment Advisers LLC decreased its stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 3.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,445 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 271 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Albemarle Corporation were worth $891,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ALB. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in Albemarle Corporation by 2,805.3% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 8,310,717 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $877,947,000 after buying an additional 8,024,668 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Albemarle Corporation by 6.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,287,799 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,298,083,000 after buying an additional 725,702 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Albemarle Corporation by 14.0% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,705,825 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $602,763,000 after buying an additional 702,388 shares in the last quarter. KAMES CAPITAL plc increased its stake in Albemarle Corporation by 2,716.6% in the first quarter. KAMES CAPITAL plc now owns 322,788 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,099,000 after buying an additional 311,328 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barings LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle Corporation during the first quarter valued at about $29,862,000. 85.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Albemarle Corporation (NYSE ALB) opened at 113.16 on Thursday. Albemarle Corporation has a 1-year low of $75.11 and a 1-year high of $123.48. The company has a market capitalization of $12.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.50 and a beta of 1.59. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $113.46 and its 200-day moving average is $106.61.
Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 7th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $737.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $735.50 million. Albemarle Corporation had a return on equity of 11.59% and a net margin of 31.49%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.93 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post $4.37 EPS for the current year.
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.13%. Albemarle Corporation’s payout ratio is currently 16.41%.
ALB has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Albemarle Corporation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $121.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, July 7th. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Albemarle Corporation in a research note on Tuesday, July 18th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Jefferies Group LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle Corporation in a research note on Friday, June 16th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle Corporation in a research note on Thursday, June 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle Corporation from $100.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 25th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $105.50.
In other news, CFO Scott Tozier sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.13, for a total transaction of $2,753,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 57,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,333,135.78. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Douglas L. Maine sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.94, for a total value of $1,079,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 24,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,606,751. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 105,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,499,850 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.
Albemarle Corporation Company Profile
Albemarle Corporation is a global developer, manufacturer and marketer of highly-engineered specialty chemicals. The Company operates through three segments: Lithium and Advanced Materials, Bromine Specialties and Refining Solutions. Lithium and Advanced Materials segment consist of two product categories: Lithium and Performance Catalyst Solutions.
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