Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Buys Shares of 13,019 Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. has invested approximately $938,000 in Albemarle Corporation, acquiring 13,019 shares of the specialty chemicals company.
• Albemarle's stock has seen price target increases from several analysts, including a raise from $60.00 to $80.00 by JPMorgan Chase & Co., indicating positive market sentiment.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, reflecting a 2.2% yield, with distributions scheduled for October 1st, and a noted negative payout ratio of -17.38%.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 13,019 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $938,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Greenline Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 24.4% during the first quarter. Greenline Partners LLC now owns 55,472 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,995,000 after purchasing an additional 10,878 shares in the last quarter. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 65.5% during the first quarter. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. now owns 116,733 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $8,407,000 after purchasing an additional 46,203 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 25.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 10.7% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 767,684 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $51,573,000 after purchasing an additional 74,037 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chiron Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 58.8% during the first quarter. Chiron Capital Management LLC now owns 14,306 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,030,000 after purchasing an additional 5,298 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Trading Down 1.0%

ALB stock traded down $0.80 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $80.14. The company had a trading volume of 2,614,991 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,717,305. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $77.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $68.08. Albemarle Corporation has a 12 month low of $49.43 and a 12 month high of $113.91. The stock has a market cap of $9.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.60 and a beta of 1.65.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.94. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 18.61% and a negative return on equity of 1.87%. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.04 EPS. Albemarle's revenue was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. Albemarle has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Albemarle's payout ratio is -17.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Baird R W downgraded Albemarle from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Mizuho set a $76.00 price objective on Albemarle in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. KeyCorp reaffirmed a "sector weight" rating on shares of Albemarle in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Albemarle from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $86.47.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets engineered specialty chemicals worldwide. It operates through three segments: Energy Storage, Specialties and Ketjen. The Energy Storage segment offers lithium compounds, including lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide, and lithium chloride; technical services for the handling and use of reactive lithium products; and lithium-containing by-products recycling services.