Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 185.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,836 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 53,203 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.07% of Albemarle worth $5,894,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ALB. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 340.6% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 62.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 471 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.9%

ALB stock traded down $0.60 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $67.39. 2,322,265 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,855,608. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $59.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.71. The stock has a market cap of $7.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.06 and a beta of 1.63. Albemarle Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $49.43 and a fifty-two week high of $113.91.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.62) by $0.44. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.18 billion. Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.92% and a negative net margin of 22.39%. Albemarle's revenue was down 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. Albemarle's payout ratio is currently -14.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on ALB shares. UBS Group decreased their price target on Albemarle from $86.00 to $64.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Albemarle from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Albemarle to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Piper Sandler set a $68.00 price target on Albemarle and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $91.62.

Albemarle 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.