Intellectus Partners LLC Raises Holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Intellectus Partners LLC boosted its position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,955 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Intellectus Partners LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $283,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 2,230,955 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $379,352,000 after purchasing an additional 131,930 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 10.3% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,570,906 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $267,117,000 after buying an additional 146,450 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,555,937 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $224,802,000 after acquiring an additional 174,391 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Albemarle by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,221,765 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $207,749,000 after purchasing an additional 151,158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,188,914 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $202,163,000 after purchasing an additional 35,019 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $125.73 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $127.18. Albemarle Co. has a 12-month low of $106.69 and a 12-month high of $247.44. The firm has a market cap of $14.78 billion, a PE ratio of 9.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.86. Albemarle had a return on equity of 26.62% and a net margin of 16.36%. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.18 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $8.62 earnings per share. Albemarle’s quarterly revenue was down 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post 3.3 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is currently 11.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $220.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $168.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $140.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $175.05.

Albemarle 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.