Rhumbline Advisers Has $17.35 Million Stock Holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 15.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 240,937 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 33,074 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.20% of Albemarle worth $17,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ALB. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 3,908 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its position in Albemarle by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 4,655 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $401,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in Albemarle by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,982 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its position in Albemarle by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 39,657 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,414,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 34.0% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 626 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Albemarle Stock Up 2.1%

ALB stock traded up $1.21 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $59.85. 2,174,311 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,876,593. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The company has a market cap of $7.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.34 and a beta of 1.61. The firm's 50-day moving average is $57.88 and its 200-day moving average is $77.04. Albemarle Co. has a 12 month low of $49.43 and a 12 month high of $118.80.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.18) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.62) by $0.44. The firm 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 1.72% and a negative net margin of 21.93%. The business's revenue was down 20.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -14.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ALB shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $77.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen raised Albemarle to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Albemarle from $68.00 to $58.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Albemarle from $86.00 to $64.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Albemarle from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $91.62.

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.