Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Reduces Stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH reduced its stake in Albemarle Corporation by 9.4% after selling 10,675 shares, now holding 102,331 shares worth $7,370,000.
• Albemarle reported an EPS of ($0.18) for the last quarter, beating analysts' estimates but showing a 20.9% decline in revenue year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405, with a dividend yield of 1.93%, set to be paid on October 1st.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH trimmed its position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 9.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,331 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 10,675 shares during the quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned about 0.09% of Albemarle worth $7,370,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ALB. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in Albemarle by 0.4% in the fourth 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. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,355 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $977,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its holdings in Albemarle by 2.6% in the first quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 9,028 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $650,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 6.7% in the first quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,782 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 6.0% in the first quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. now owns 5,136 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $370,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Albemarle stock traded down $2.71 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $68.89. 4,934,615 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,029,769. Albemarle Corporation has a twelve month low of $49.43 and a twelve month high of $113.91. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $65.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $69.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 2.11. The firm has a market cap of $8.11 billion, a PE ratio of -6.20 and a beta of 1.63.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.76) by $0.87. Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.92% and a negative net margin of 22.39%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.04 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio is currently -14.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ALB. UBS Group set a $57.00 price target on Albemarle and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Piper Sandler set a $68.00 price target on Albemarle and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Albemarle from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $85.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Mizuho set a $76.00 price objective on Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $91.00.

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.