BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. Has $18.71 Million Stock Holdings in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. raised its stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 181.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 132,250 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 85,320 shares during the quarter. Albemarle makes up 0.4% of BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda.’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $18,705,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Nordea Investment Management AB acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth $6,171,000. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth $1,055,000. Aegis Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 3rd quarter worth $324,000. Three Seasons Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth $873,000. Finally, J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 493.3% during the 4th quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 84,011 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $11,883,000 after purchasing an additional 69,850 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 2.6%

Albemarle stock opened at $171.85 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -50.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.21. Albemarle Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $53.70 and a fifty-two week high of $221.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $183.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $164.66.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 5.00% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. 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 firm earned ($0.18) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is -47.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $230.00 to $244.00 in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Berenberg Bank set a $153.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $188.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.42.

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.