Albemarle Corporation $ALB Shares Purchased by 1248 Management LLC

Key Points

• 1248 Management LLC significantly increased its holdings in Albemarle Corporation by 265.8% during the first quarter, now owning 11,800 shares valued at approximately $851,000.
• Albemarle's quarterly earnings report revealed a profit of $0.11 per share, beating estimates, despite a decline in revenue of 7.0% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, with a yield of 2.2%, to be paid on October 1st to shareholders of record on September 12th.

1248 Management LLC boosted its stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 265.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,800 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,574 shares during the period. 1248 Management LLC's holdings in Albemarle were worth $851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ALB. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 74.5% in the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 452 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC lifted its position 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 worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB traded down $0.33 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $80.61. 894,159 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,590,302. The business's 50 day moving average price is $77.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.49 billion, a PE ratio of -8.65 and a beta of 1.65. 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 1-year low of $49.43 and a 1-year high of $113.91.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.94. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 18.61% and a negative return on equity of 1.87%. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $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. Equities research analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -17.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ALB. Mizuho set a $76.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Albemarle from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Albemarle from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, 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 note on Friday, August 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $86.47.

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.