Sava Infond d.o.o. Sells 17,900 Shares of Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Sava Infond d.o.o. cut its stake in Albemarle by 32.9% in Q4, selling 17,900 shares and now holds 36,510 shares valued at about $5.16 million (≈0.7% of its portfolio, its 26th largest holding).
• Albemarle CEO J. Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares on March 10 at an average $170.81 for roughly $2.01 million, an 8.05% reduction that leaves him with 134,628 shares.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed—upgrades from RBC (target $245) and Zacks versus a downgrade from Redburn—with the stock trading near $188 and an average MarketBeat target of $177.48; upcoming Q1 results (May 6) could drive volatility.

Sava Infond d.o.o. cut its stake in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 32.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,510 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 17,900 shares during the period. Albemarle comprises approximately 0.7% of Sava Infond d.o.o.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Sava Infond d.o.o.'s holdings in Albemarle were worth $5,164,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OLD National Bancorp IN increased its stake in Albemarle by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 137,265 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $19,415,000 after buying an additional 22,254 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. increased its stake in Albemarle by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 6,080 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $860,000 after buying an additional 917 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Trust & Investment Management Co purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $309,000. Kanawha Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $281,000. Finally, EPG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $266,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $2,012,654.23. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,628 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,995,808.68. The trade was a 8.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Albemarle

Here are the key news stories impacting Albemarle this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target to $245 and kept an Outperform rating, reinforcing upside potential from re-rating and fundamentals. RBC price target raise to $245
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded ALB to a Rank #2 (Buy), which can attract momentum and retail flows into the stock. Zacks upgrade to Buy
• Positive Sentiment: ALB has shown strong recent momentum (about +14% over one week), which supports continued buying interest from momentum investors. ALB up 13.89% in one week
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst coverage is broadly positive (many buy/outperform ratings and a median price target near $207), giving a constructive medium-term backdrop but mixed near-term signals. Analyst coverage and targets summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparative analysis vs. peers (e.g., SQM) highlights Albemarle's exposure to recovering lithium demand and capacity ramps; useful context but not an immediate catalyst. ALB vs SQM comparison
• Negative Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded Albemarle to Neutral from Buy, warning that improving spot lithium prices may not translate immediately into company margins — a key near-term headwind ahead of Q1 results. Redburn downgrade note
• Negative Sentiment: Market headlines report the stock slipping amid broader sector volatility and profit-taking; upcoming Q1 earnings (scheduled for after the close on May 6) raises the risk of positioning-driven swings. ALB sinks as market gains

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on ALB shares. Wells Fargo & Company set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered shares of Albemarle from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $188.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore lifted their target price on Albemarle from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley set a $189.00 target price on Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Albemarle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Albemarle currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $177.48.

Albemarle Trading Down 2.6%

NYSE ALB opened at $188.10 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -32.71, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.43. Albemarle Corporation has a one year low of $53.70 and a one year high of $215.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The business's fifty day moving average is $176.48 and its 200-day moving average is $148.69.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.53) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.40) by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.09) earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 8.28 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Albemarle's payout ratio is currently -28.17%.

About Albemarle

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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