Quantitative Investment Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Quantitative Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 30,750 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $4,152,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Pinkerton Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth $2,785,000. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 181.8% in the fourth quarter. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. now owns 132,250 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $18,705,000 after acquiring an additional 85,320 shares during the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the second quarter worth about $4,246,000. NFJ Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the second quarter worth about $23,328,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in Albemarle by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 230,690 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $32,655,000 after purchasing an additional 74,202 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.0%

Albemarle stock opened at $137.34 on Monday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $129.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.70. Albemarle Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $71.25 and a fifty-two week high of $221.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 508.69 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.35.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.11 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.39 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Albemarle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is currently 600.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ALB shares. Vertical Research raised shares of Albemarle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $224.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $166.00 to $157.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $225.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Fifteen 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, Albemarle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $190.04.

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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