Nuveen LLC Invests $26.84 Million in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 384,143 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $26,836,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.33% of Albemarle at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,672,272 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,056,697,000 after purchasing an additional 77,773 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Albemarle by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,990,762 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $171,365,000 after buying an additional 25,207 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in Albemarle by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,432,153 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $123,280,000 after acquiring an additional 8,243 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Albemarle by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,290,797 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $111,112,000 after acquiring an additional 139,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Albemarle by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,195,496 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $102,910,000 after acquiring an additional 14,603 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Performance

ALB traded up $2.72 during trading on Friday, hitting $81.66. The stock had a trading volume of 1,217,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,548,105. The firm has a market cap of $9.61 billion, a PE ratio of -8.77 and a beta of 1.63. Albemarle Corporation has a 12 month low of $49.43 and a 12 month high of $113.91. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.97.

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

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on ALB. Baird R W lowered shares of Albemarle from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. TD Securities reduced their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Albemarle from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 16th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $89.17.

About Albemarle

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.