Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Price Target Raised to $103.00 at Robert W. Baird

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price target hoisted by Robert W. Baird from $79.00 to $103.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Robert W. Baird currently has a neutral rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Albemarle from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.74.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB opened at $90.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $10.64 billion, a PE ratio of -5.41 and a beta of 1.56. Albemarle has a 12-month low of $71.97 and a 12-month high of $153.54. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.23. 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 Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP grew its stake in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Albemarle during the third quarter worth $31,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 61.9% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 387 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Advisors LLC raised its position in Albemarle by 100.0% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

About Albemarle

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.