Handelsbanken Fonder AB Boosts Stock Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB significantly increased its stake in Albemarle, boosting holdings by 368.5% in the fourth quarter to 379,127 shares valued at about $53.6 million. Institutional investors now own 92.87% of the company.
• Albemarle beat Wall Street’s earnings expectations in its latest quarterly report, posting $2.95 EPS versus the $1.24 consensus and revenue of $1.43 billion, up 32.7% year over year. Analysts still see moderate upside, with an average target price of $200.26 and a “Moderate Buy” rating.
• The stock has drawn mixed signals from insiders and analysts: CEO J. Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares in May, while several firms raised price targets, including Truist to $260 and RBC to $253. Albemarle also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, payable July 1.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 368.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 379,127 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 298,207 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned 0.32% of Albemarle worth $53,624,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Phoenix Financial Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter worth $130,415,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 4,338.5% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 738,430 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $104,444,000 after buying an additional 721,793 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 22,047.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 713,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $44,613,000 after buying an additional 710,589 shares during the period. Samlyn Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 3rd quarter worth $47,088,000. Finally, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 3rd quarter worth $41,239,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,519 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,078,990.68. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ALB shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Albemarle from $145.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Albemarle from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Albemarle from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Albemarle from $190.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $200.26.

Albemarle Trading Down 3.9%

ALB opened at $168.82 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $19.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -49.51, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Albemarle Corporation has a 12 month low of $53.70 and a 12 month high of $221.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $182.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $159.78.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $1.71. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 32.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.18) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

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

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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