Albemarle Corporation $ALB Shares Bought by M&T Bank Corp

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in Albemarle by 25.0% in Q4 to 52,823 shares, valued at about $7.47 million.
• The analyst landscape is mixed with a MarketBeat consensus of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $183, while broker moves range from JPMorgan cutting its target to $145 to RBC and Bank of America raising theirs to $245 and $225 respectively.
• Insider and shareholder updates: CEO J. Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares for roughly $2.01 million (an 8.05% reduction), and the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.405 ($1.62 annual; yield ~0.8%; ex-dividend June 12).

M&T Bank Corp grew its stake in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 25.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 52,823 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,576 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in Albemarle were worth $7,471,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ALB. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. BOKF NA increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the 3rd quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 36.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 413 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ALB. Wells Fargo & Company set a $165.00 target price on Albemarle in a report on Monday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Albemarle from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Albemarle from $190.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Albemarle from $216.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Albemarle from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $183.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $2,012,654.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 134,628 shares in the company, valued at $22,995,808.68. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Albemarle Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $194.99 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.23. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $53.70 and a 1 year high of $215.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.99 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.91, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $179.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $152.97.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.53) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.40) by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.The firm's revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($1.09) EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 8.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is currently -28.17%.

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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