Smithfield Trust Co Decreases Stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Smithfield Trust Co lessened its holdings in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 9.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 11,231 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,110 shares during the quarter. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ALB. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 1,400.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in Albemarle by 606.5% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. First Community Trust NA increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% in the 4th quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 48.9% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 414 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB stock opened at $72.13 on Wednesday. Albemarle Co. has a 52 week low of $67.23 and a 52 week high of $137.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $84.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.48 billion, a PE ratio of -6.44 and a beta of 1.59.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.72% and a negative net margin of 21.93%. On average, research analysts predict that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.25%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -14.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Clarkson Capital assumed coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Albemarle from $73.00 to $68.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Evercore ISI downgraded Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $255,328.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. This represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.