Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 57.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,241,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 453,881 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 1.05% of Albemarle worth $175,542,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 25.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 26.2% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 996 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 1st quarter valued at about $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 1st quarter valued at about $411,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on ALB. HSBC raised their target price on Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Albemarle from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $236.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Evercore boosted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $203.04.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at $16,078,990.68. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Albemarle Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of ALB opened at $155.73 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $18.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -45.67, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.31. Albemarle Corporation has a 12 month low of $55.90 and a 12 month high of $221.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $183.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $166.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The business’s revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.18) EPS. Analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -47.51%.

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.