SCS Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

SCS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 40,910 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,541,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ALB. BOKF NA increased its position in Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 121.5% during the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 299 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $136.07 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $16.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 504.00 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.09. Albemarle Corporation has a one year low of $71.25 and a one year high of $221.00. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $134.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.22.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.11 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This is a boost from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is 600.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Vertical Research raised Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Albemarle from $166.00 to $157.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.26.

Albemarle 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.