Man Group plc Purchases New Stake in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Man Group plc acquired a new position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 238,669 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $32,227,000. Man Group plc owned 0.20% of Albemarle as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Addison Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. BOKF NA raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 536.7% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the period. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Albemarle from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued a "reduce" rating and issued a $161.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Albemarle from $166.00 to $157.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Albemarle from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 10th. Fifteen investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $190.04.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $134.59 on Thursday. Albemarle Corporation has a 52 week low of $71.25 and a 52 week high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.09. The company has a market capitalization of $15.88 billion, a PE ratio of 498.50 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $130.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $160.09.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.55. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This is a boost from Albemarle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is presently 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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