Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Sold by Ensign Peak Advisors Inc

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc trimmed its position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 141,334 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 8,935 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned approximately 0.12% of Albemarle worth $12,166,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ALB. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 48.9% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 414 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. First Community Trust NA raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% during the fourth quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 3,908 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 4,655 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in Albemarle by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,982 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $257,000 after buying an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.3%

Albemarle stock traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $60.15. 3,815,809 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,784,534. The company has a market cap of $7.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.37 and a beta of 1.71. Albemarle Co. has a twelve month low of $49.43 and a twelve month high of $134.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a fifty day moving average of $63.46 and a 200-day moving average of $82.03.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.62) by $0.44. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 21.93% and a negative return on equity of 1.72%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.26 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 20.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -14.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ALB. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $92.43.

About Albemarle

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.