Mirabella Financial Services LLP Acquires New Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Mirabella Financial Services LLP opened a new position in Albemarle (NYSE:ALB), buying 18,563 shares in Q3 valued at about $1.51 million, while institutional investors now own roughly 92.87% of the company.
• Albemarle missed EPS expectations (reported -$0.53 vs. -$0.40 estimate) but beat revenue estimates with $1.43 billion (up 15.9% YoY), and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 ($1.62 annualized, ~1.0% yield; ex-dividend March 13).
• CEO J. Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares for about $2.01 million (an ~8.05% reduction in his position), while analysts maintain a consensus of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $170.24 and several firms raising targets recently.

Mirabella Financial Services LLP bought a new position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 18,563 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $1,505,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strategic Advocates LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. BOKF NA raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the 3rd quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 36.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 413 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 1.6%

NYSE ALB opened at $163.15 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $171.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $130.54. Albemarle Corporation has a one year low of $49.43 and a one year high of $206.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.23. The company has a market capitalization of $19.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.43.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.53) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.40) by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($1.09) EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Albemarle's payout ratio is -28.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total transaction of $2,012,654.23. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,995,808.68. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ALB. UBS Group increased their price target on Albemarle from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $156.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Albemarle from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Albemarle from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $170.24.

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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