Albemarle Corporation $ALB Position Increased by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its Albemarle position by 1,455.8% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 32,982 shares valued at approximately $5.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.87% of the company.
• Albemarle reported quarterly earnings of $3.75 per share, exceeding estimates of $3.20, while revenue rose 31.1% year over year to $1.74 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $190.26 price target, although targets range from $161 to $250 and one analyst maintains a “Reduce” rating.

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 1,455.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 32,982 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 30,862 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Albemarle were worth $5,921,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,630,394 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $230,603,000 after purchasing an additional 207,770 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Albemarle by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,263,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $102,464,000 after buying an additional 22,856 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Albemarle by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,241,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $175,542,000 after buying an additional 453,881 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at about $165,271,000. Finally, Phoenix Financial Ltd. purchased a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at about $130,415,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on ALB shares. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $225.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Argus upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. HSBC raised their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a "reduce" rating and set a $161.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $190.26.

Albemarle Price Performance

NYSE ALB opened at $136.07 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 504.00 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $134.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $162.22. Albemarle Corporation has a 52-week low of $71.25 and a 52-week high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.55. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Albemarle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 600.00%.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company's bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world's foremost chemical producers.

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