NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Sells 24,594 Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC trimmed its position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 68.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,408 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 24,594 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $1,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. WFA Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. First Community Trust NA purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the second quarter worth $25,000. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 610.0% during the second quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 284 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 45.0% in the 1st quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 332 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $135.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. HSBC lowered shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $137.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Albemarle to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.30.

Albemarle Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of ALB stock opened at $93.51 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $91.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $101.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.00, a PEG ratio of 13.81 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 2.67. Albemarle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.97 and a fifty-two week high of $153.54.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative net margin of 6.72% and a positive return on equity of 6.38%. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.33 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 39.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post 0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.