530,405 Shares in Albemarle Corporation $ALB Purchased by M&G PLC

Key Points

• M&G PLC acquired 530,405 Albemarle shares in the third quarter, valued at about $56.1 million and representing 0.45% of the company.
• Albemarle’s latest quarterly results topped estimates: EPS was $2.58 versus $2.53 expected, while revenue reached $1.55 billion and rose 18.8% year over year.
• Analysts’ consensus rating was Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $174.05; the stock was trading at $98.96 in the article.

M&G PLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 530,405 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $56,106,000. M&G PLC owned 0.45% of Albemarle as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Primecap Management Co. CA purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter worth about $358,101,000. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 69.7% during the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,436,117 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $151,912,000 after purchasing an additional 589,787 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Albemarle in the second quarter valued at about $131,049,000. Amundi lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 40.5% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 827,874 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $111,784,000 after buying an additional 238,774 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Albemarle during the second quarter worth $103,268,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE:ALB opened at $98.96 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.34. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $106.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.09. Albemarle Corporation has a 52 week low of $89.77 and a 52 week high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.05. Albemarle had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 15.23%. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.19) EPS. Albemarle's quarterly revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 18th will be given a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 18th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on ALB shares. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $109.00 to $95.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Albemarle from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $170.00 price target (down from $185.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.05.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a specialty chemicals company that produces lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. Its products serve industries including energy storage, transportation, electronics, petroleum refining and pharmaceuticals.

The company supplies lithium compounds used in rechargeable batteries and other applications. It also makes bromine-based products for uses such as flame retardants and water treatment, along with catalysts used in refining petroleum.

Albemarle traces its history to 1887 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ALB? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.