Semanteon Capital Management LP Takes $1.10 Million Position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Semanteon Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 11,610 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,100,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 5.5% during the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 5,501 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $725,000 after acquiring an additional 286 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 38,262 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $5,041,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 18.0% in the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,078 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the period. Hedeker Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Hedeker Wealth LLC now owns 6,478 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $853,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 1.9% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 348,544 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $45,917,000 after purchasing an additional 6,425 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Up 4.0 %

ALB traded up $3.70 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $97.21. The company had a trading volume of 231,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,989,012. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $91.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $101.59. Albemarle Co. has a 52 week low of $71.97 and a 52 week high of $153.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a market capitalization of $11.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.27, a PEG ratio of 13.81 and a beta of 1.54.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.49). Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 6.38% and a negative net margin of 6.72%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.33 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 39.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Albemarle Co. will post 0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Albemarle to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on Albemarle from $105.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Baird R W lowered shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $79.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $117.30.

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.