94,373 Shares in Albemarle Corporation $ALB Purchased by Old West Investment Management LLC

Old West Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 94,373 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,743,000. Old West Investment Management LLC owned about 0.08% of Albemarle at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 25.5% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 26.2% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $346,000 after purchasing an additional 996 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in Albemarle during the first quarter worth approximately $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle during the first quarter worth about $411,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Albemarle by 536.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ALB. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $166.00 to $157.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Morgan Stanley restated a “reduce” rating and set a $161.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a report on Monday, August 10th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Berenberg Bank boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $190.26.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB stock opened at $136.07 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $134.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $162.22. The firm has a market cap of $16.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 504.00 and a beta of 1.33. Albemarle Corporation has a 1-year low of $71.25 and a 1-year high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.35.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.55. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.11 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.41 dividend. This is a positive change from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 600.00%.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company’s bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world’s foremost chemical producers.