Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Cut to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Berenberg Bank raised their price target on shares of Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. HSBC boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.22.

Albemarle Stock Up 0.8%

ALB stock opened at $118.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.98 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.76 and a beta of 1.33. The business has a 50-day moving average of $141.79 and a 200-day moving average of $165.35. Albemarle has a fifty-two week low of $66.67 and a fifty-two week high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.Albemarle’s quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.18) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.41 per share. This is a positive change from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently -47.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at $16,078,990.68. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 190.1% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 293 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 121.5% in the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 299 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Albemarle

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.