Albemarle Corporation $ALB Stock: Vest Financial LLC Raises Stake

Key Points

• Vest Financial increased its Albemarle stake by 73.2% in the third quarter, purchasing 179,138 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 423,863 shares valued at approximately $48.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.87% of ALB.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with 16 Buy, eight Hold, and two Sell ratings. Albemarle has an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $179, despite several firms recently lowering their targets.
• ALB shares opened at $94.39, near their 52-week low of $88.01 and well below the 52-week high of $221. The company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, reporting $3.75 in EPS and $1.74 billion in revenue, up 31.1% year over year.

Vest Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 73.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 423,863 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 179,138 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.36% of Albemarle worth $48,616,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Albemarle by 68.7% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 7,993 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $845,000 after purchasing an additional 3,255 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 124.0% in the 3rd quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 6,934 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $733,000 after purchasing an additional 3,838 shares during the last quarter. City State Bank increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 69.5% in the third quarter. City State Bank now owns 644 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 368.1% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 18,292 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,935,000 after purchasing an additional 14,384 shares during the period. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ALB. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Albemarle from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Wall Street Zen raised Albemarle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a "reduce" rating and set a $161.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Albemarle from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $179.00.

Albemarle Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of ALB opened at $94.39 on Thursday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $117.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 349.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.36. Albemarle Corporation has a 1-year low of $88.01 and a 1-year high of $221.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.55. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current year.

About Albemarle

Albemarle Corporation NYSE: ALB is a global specialty chemicals company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company develops, manufactures, and markets engineered chemicals used in energy storage, transportation, refining, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, consumer products, and other industrial applications.

Albemarle is one of the world's major producers of lithium and supplies lithium compounds, including lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide, for use in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid energy-storage systems.

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