Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Position Boosted by Sicart Associates LLC

Sicart Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,986 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 180 shares during the quarter. Albemarle makes up about 2.3% of Sicart Associates LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Sicart Associates LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Albemarle worth $6,466,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ALB. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 176.6% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,588,986 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $209,333,000 after buying an additional 3,662,117 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 9,108.7% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 574,805 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,440,000 after purchasing an additional 568,563 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,007,000. PGGM Investments lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 261.6% in the 1st quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 413,492 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,473,000 after purchasing an additional 299,148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 115.7% in the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 542,200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $51,791,000 after purchasing an additional 290,862 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of Albemarle stock traded down $0.46 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $97.68. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 622,746 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,987,988. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 2.67 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The company has a market capitalization of $11.48 billion, a PE ratio of 35.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 13.81 and a beta of 1.54. Albemarle Co. has a 12 month low of $71.97 and a 12 month high of $153.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $91.66 and a 200 day moving average of $101.36.

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

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently 58.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on ALB. HSBC lowered Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $95.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on Albemarle from $135.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Albemarle from $115.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Albemarle from $128.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Berenberg Bank lowered Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $83.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.30.

Albemarle Company 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.