Ping Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stake in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Ping Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Albemarle Corporation by 124.7% in Q2, owning a total of 16,400 shares worth approximately $1,028,000.
• Despite a revenue decrease of 7.0% year over year, Albemarle reported earnings of $0.11 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations.
• Albemarle recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.9%, with a current payout ratio of -17.38%.

Ping Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 124.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,400 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,100 shares during the period. Ping Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Albemarle were worth $1,028,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 10.7% during the first quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 50,326 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,624,000 after acquiring an additional 4,872 shares in the last quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 5.2% during the first quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 243,036 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $17,503,000 after acquiring an additional 12,014 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter valued at about $271,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 3.6% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 184,426 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $13,282,000 after acquiring an additional 6,487 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter valued at about $303,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $87.49 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Albemarle Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $49.43 and a fifty-two week high of $113.91. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $68.77. The company has a market cap of $10.30 billion, a PE ratio of -9.39 and a beta of 1.65.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.04 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Albemarle has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is currently -17.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ALB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Albemarle from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. HSBC boosted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Mizuho set a $76.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $85.83.

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.

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