Albemarle Corporation $ALB Position Lowered by Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda

Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda trimmed its position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 56.8% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 42,112 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 55,280 shares during the quarter. Albemarle accounts for 2.3% of Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $7,560,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Evexia Wealth LLC raised its stake in Albemarle by 2.3% during the first quarter. Evexia Wealth LLC now owns 2,088 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $387,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,468 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC now owns 5,769 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $816,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 2,952 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $530,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $508,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total value of $3,011,721.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,078,990.68. This trade represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Albemarle from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. HSBC boosted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup raised shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.22.

Albemarle Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $117.46 on Monday. Albemarle Corporation has a 12-month low of $64.95 and a 12-month high of $221.00. The company has a market cap of $13.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.45 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.76.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.18) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.79 EPS for the current 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 given a dividend of $0.41 per share. This is an increase from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is currently -48.09%.

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.