Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Trading Down 2.2%

Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)’s share price was down 2.2% on Friday . The company traded as low as $93.73 and last traded at $94.12. Approximately 1,039,462 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 3,057,882 shares. The stock had previously closed at $96.27.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ALB shares. Vertical Research downgraded Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, March 8th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Albemarle from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Albemarle in a report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $137.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $155.78.

Albemarle Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $11.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $117.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $123.78.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 4.02%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 47.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $10.32 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post 2.07 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.18%.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In related news, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total value of $114,251.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $921,875.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Albemarle news, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total transaction of $114,251.79. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,802 shares in the company, valued at $921,875.06. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total value of $194,950.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $626,882.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Albemarle

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,083,522 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,034,787,000 after purchasing an additional 82,874 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 128.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,076,357 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,022,420,000 after acquiring an additional 3,979,885 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 31.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,800,219 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $838,025,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396,624 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Albemarle by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,185,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $749,235,000 after purchasing an additional 1,667,164 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 55.8% in the 4th quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 3,476,674 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $502,310,000 after buying an additional 1,245,719 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

About Albemarle

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.