Aigen Investment Management LP Buys 19,477 Shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB)

Key Points

• Aigen Investment Management LP increased its holdings in Albemarle Corporation by 357.0% in Q1, bringing its total to 24,932 shares valued at approximately $1.8 million.
• Albemarle recently reported a profit of $0.11 EPS, significantly beating estimates, although it saw a 7.0% year-over-year revenue decline.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, set to be paid on October 1st, 2023, reflecting a 2.1% dividend yield.

Aigen Investment Management LP grew its holdings in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 357.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,932 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 19,477 shares during the quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP's holdings in Albemarle were worth $1,796,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ALB. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in Albemarle by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 39,657 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,414,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,355 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $977,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 9,028 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $650,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,782 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 4,244 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ALB. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Albemarle from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Albemarle to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Albemarle from $85.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $74.00 target price on Albemarle and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Albemarle from $80.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $88.06.

Albemarle Stock Down 3.4%

NYSE ALB traded down $2.75 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $78.01. The stock had a trading volume of 5,412,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,892,202. The company has a market capitalization of $9.18 billion, a PE ratio of -8.37 and a beta of 1.63. The company's 50-day moving average price is $68.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a current ratio of 2.31. Albemarle Corporation has a 12 month low of $49.43 and a 12 month high of $113.91.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.94. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.23 billion. Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.87% and a negative net margin of 18.61%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.04 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is currently -17.38%.

Albemarle 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.