Manhattan West Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB)

Manhattan West Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 11.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,835 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares during the period. Manhattan West Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $780,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 17.4% during the first quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 1,167,520 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $84,085,000 after purchasing an additional 173,441 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 6,393.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 152,394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $10,975,000 after buying an additional 150,047 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc increased its stake in Albemarle by 1,213.0% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 158,649 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $13,657,000 after acquiring an additional 146,566 shares during the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 294.7% during the fourth quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 187,072 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $16,103,000 after acquiring an additional 139,672 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Albemarle by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,290,797 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $111,112,000 after acquiring an additional 139,600 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Trading Up 7.6%

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $75.36 on Friday. Albemarle Corporation has a twelve month low of $49.43 and a twelve month high of $113.91. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market cap of $8.87 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.09 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $67.25 and a 200-day moving average of $68.35.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.94. The business had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 18.61% and a negative return on equity of 1.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.04 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently -17.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank upped their target price on Albemarle from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup reduced their target price on Albemarle from $85.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group increased their price target on Albemarle from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Albemarle from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $85.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.06.

Albemarle Company 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.