SIR Capital Management L.P. Buys Shares of 83,342 Albemarle Corporation $ALB

SIR Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 83,342 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,254,000. Albemarle comprises approximately 1.3% of SIR Capital Management L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $165,271,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $131,049,000. Phoenix Financial Ltd. acquired a new position in Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at $130,415,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at $103,268,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 4,338.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 738,430 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $104,444,000 after purchasing an additional 721,793 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ALB. Argus raised their price objective on Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. HSBC increased their target price on Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their price target on Albemarle from $188.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. UBS Group lowered their price target on Albemarle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Berenberg Bank increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.26.

Albemarle Trading Down 1.2%

ALB stock opened at $141.60 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $16.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 524.46 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $131.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.50. Albemarle Corporation has a 52 week low of $71.25 and a 52 week high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.55. Albemarle had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 3.09%.The business had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.63 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 600.00%.

Albemarle 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.