Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Acquired by Stifel Financial Corp

Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 213,501 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 16,925 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned 0.18% of Albemarle worth $20,225,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 61.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 387 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Cornerstone Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 2,142.1% during the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 426 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $79.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $105.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $114.47.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at $7,457,296.64. This represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $109.66 on Tuesday. Albemarle Co. has a 52 week low of $71.97 and a 52 week high of $153.54. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.89 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.55 and a beta of 1.56. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $101.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.29.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders 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 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -9.67%.

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.