Soltis Investment Advisors LLC Sells 5,713 Shares of Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Key Points

• Soltis Investment Advisors cut its Albemarle stake by 27.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 5,713 shares and leaving it with 15,000 shares valued at about $2.12 million.
• Insider activity also showed selling, as CEO J. Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares on March 10 for roughly $2.01 million, reducing his direct ownership by 8.05%.
• Albemarle’s recent results and outlook were strong: the company beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, and analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $200.26.

Soltis Investment Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 27.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 5,713 shares during the quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Albemarle were worth $2,122,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ALB. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 25.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $229,000 after acquiring an additional 654 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 26.2% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 996 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter valued at approximately $411,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,995,808.68. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on ALB. Berenberg Bank set a $153.00 target price on Albemarle in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded shares of Albemarle from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $188.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $236.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $200.26.

Albemarle Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $180.46 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The company has a 50-day moving average of $182.00 and a 200 day moving average of $158.73. The firm has a market cap of $21.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -52.92, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.36. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $53.70 and a 1 year high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.18) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is currently -47.51%.

Albemarle 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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