Great Lakes Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors purchased 31,443 Albemarle shares worth approximately $4.25 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 92.87% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with 15 Buy, 10 Hold, and 1 Sell rating; MarketBeat reports a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $190.26 average price target.
• Albemarle reported quarterly earnings of $3.75 per share, exceeding estimates by $0.55, while revenue rose 31.1% year over year to $1.74 billion.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 31,443 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $4,246,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ALB. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Albemarle during the second quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 2nd quarter worth $708,000. Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 2nd quarter worth $210,000. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 2nd quarter valued at $277,000. Finally, Aegis Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at $540,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on ALB. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Berenberg Bank boosted their target price on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Albemarle from $166.00 to $157.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $205.00 to $185.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Albemarle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $190.26.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $134.59 on Friday. Albemarle Corporation has a 12 month low of $71.25 and a 12 month high of $221.00. The company has a market cap of $15.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 498.50 and a beta of 1.33. The business's 50 day moving average is $132.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $160.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 3.09%.Albemarle's revenue for the quarter was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.11 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.91 EPS 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. This is a boost from Albemarle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Albemarle's payout ratio is currently 600.00%.

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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