Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Has $833,000 Holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 5.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,800 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 516 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $833,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Albemarle by 643.4% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 21,143 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,020,000 after buying an additional 18,299 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 8.8% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 27,262 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,604,000 after purchasing an additional 2,196 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 5.1% in the second quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 11,408 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,090,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares in the last quarter. Cove Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the second quarter worth approximately $1,828,000. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky purchased a new position in Albemarle during the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total transaction of $255,328.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. This trade represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 7.2 %

ALB opened at $90.54 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $101.68 and a 200-day moving average of $96.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.41 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Albemarle Co. has a 1-year low of $71.97 and a 1-year high of $153.54.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is -9.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Albemarle from $79.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price target on Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.74.

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.