Albemarle Corporation to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.41 (NYSE:ALB)

Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, July 22nd, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a dividend of 0.405 per share by the specialty chemicals company on Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%.

Albemarle has a payout ratio of 216.0% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Analysts expect Albemarle to earn $1.91 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.62 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 84.8%.

Albemarle Stock Up 8.1%

ALB traded up $6.26 on Tuesday, reaching $83.41. 6,243,961 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,285,156. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 2.11 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $9.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.50 and a beta of 1.63. Albemarle has a 52-week low of $49.43 and a 52-week high of $113.91. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $62.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.89.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.62) by $0.44. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.18 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 22.39% and a negative return on equity of 1.92%. Albemarle's revenue for the quarter was down 20.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.26 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Albemarle will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle during the 1st quarter worth about $411,000. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the first quarter worth $208,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 26.2% in the first 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. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 25.5% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 654 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen raised Albemarle to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. TD Securities dropped their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler set a $68.00 price target on Albemarle and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Albemarle from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $91.00.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.

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