Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 188,899 Shares of Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA trimmed its holdings in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 42.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 256,069 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 188,899 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $45,972,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Advocates LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV bought a new stake in Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. BOKF NA raised its holdings in Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the 3rd quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the period. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Albemarle by 536.7% in the second 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Vertical Research raised shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Citigroup raised shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Albemarle from $236.00 to $224.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,078,990.68. The trade was a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Albemarle Stock Up 4.0%

Shares of ALB stock opened at $134.96 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $173.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.41. 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 Corporation has a 1 year low of $60.64 and a 1 year high of $221.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.92 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.58, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.30.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $1.71. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.Albemarle’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.18) EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -47.51%.

About Albemarle

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.