California State Teachers Retirement System Grows Stock Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 22.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 136,123 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 24,549 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.12% of Albemarle worth $24,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Evexia Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Evexia Wealth LLC now owns 2,088 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 1.2% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp grew its position in Albemarle by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 2,952 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 1.9% during the 4th 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE ALB opened at $117.46 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.85 billion, a PE ratio of -34.45 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a fifty day moving average of $142.86 and a 200 day moving average of $165.79. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $64.95 and a 1 year high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $1.71. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 32.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.18) EPS. Research analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This is a boost from Albemarle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is presently -47.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,078,990.68. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ALB shares. HSBC raised their price target on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Argus raised their target price on Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Albemarle from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.22.

About Albemarle

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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