Amanah Holdings Trust Acquires Shares of 135,000 Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Amanah Holdings Trust bought a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 135,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $19,094,000. Albemarle accounts for 2.8% of Amanah Holdings Trust's portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Amanah Holdings Trust owned about 0.11% of Albemarle at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,468 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC now owns 5,769 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $816,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $508,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 782 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas now owns 2,423 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Trading Down 3.9%

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $160.13 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $180.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.46. Albemarle Corporation has a 52-week low of $55.90 and a 52-week high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.07. The company has a market cap of $18.88 billion, a PE ratio of -46.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.30.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $1.71. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.18) EPS. The company's revenue was up 32.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Albemarle's payout ratio is -47.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total value of $3,011,721.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,078,990.68. The trade was a 15.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Albemarle from $230.00 to $244.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Albemarle from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Citigroup raised Albemarle from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Albemarle from $236.00 to $224.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $202.54.

Albemarle 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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