J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Has $11.88 Million Stock Holdings in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 493.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 84,011 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 69,850 shares during the quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $11,883,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ALB. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 25.5% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $229,000 after acquiring an additional 654 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its position in Albemarle by 26.2% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $346,000 after acquiring an additional 996 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in Albemarle in the 1st quarter valued at about $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Albemarle in the 1st quarter valued at about $411,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $248,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Argus increased their price target on Albemarle from $140.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Zacks Research lowered Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Evercore lifted their price objective on Albemarle from $100.00 to $180.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Albemarle from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.24.

Albemarle Stock Performance

NYSE ALB opened at $177.02 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $172.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $49.43 and a 1 year high of $206.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.53) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.40) by ($0.13). Albemarle had a negative net margin of 10.74% and a positive return on equity of 0.41%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.09) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect 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, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently -28.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $2,012,654.23. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 134,628 shares in the company, valued at $22,995,808.68. The trade was a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.