Aberdeen Group plc Has $696,000 Stock Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc has significantly reduced its stake in Albemarle Corporation by 74.8%, holding 9,748 shares valued at $696,000 after selling 28,862 shares in the first quarter.
• Albemarle reported quarterly earnings of $0.11 per share, beating expectations and totaling revenues of $1.33 billion, although their revenue was down 7% year-over-year.
• A quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share will be paid out on October 1st, representing an annualized yield of 2.0%, with an ex-dividend date set for September 12th.

Aberdeen Group plc reduced its position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 74.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,748 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 28,862 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc's holdings in Albemarle were worth $696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Albemarle in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter valued at $32,000. National Pension Service lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 74.5% during the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 452 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 84.1% during the first quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 670 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 306 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Albemarle Stock Down 4.0%

Shares of ALB traded down $3.54 on Thursday, hitting $84.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,097,349 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,541,522. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $72.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.06. Albemarle Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $49.43 and a fifty-two week high of $113.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.01 and a beta of 1.63.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.94. Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.87% and a negative net margin of 18.61%.The business had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.04 EPS. Albemarle's quarterly revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Albemarle has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Albemarle's payout ratio is currently -17.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ALB. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $74.00 price target on Albemarle and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group upgraded Albemarle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $62.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $68.00 price objective on Albemarle and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $86.00.

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.