Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Albemarle shares fell 2.7%, opening at $126.90 versus a prior close of $132.16, and remain below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $190.04, although several firms recently lowered their targets or downgraded the stock.
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, while maintaining a $0.41 quarterly dividend yielding about 1.3%; institutional investors own approximately 92.9% of the shares.

Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $132.16, but opened at $126.90. Albemarle shares last traded at $125.8170, with a volume of 516,260 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on ALB. 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. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Albemarle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $166.00 to $157.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $190.04.

Albemarle Stock Down 2.7%

The stock has a market cap of $15.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 476.27, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $128.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $158.80.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.39 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. This is a positive change from Albemarle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 600.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in Albemarle by 13,478.5% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 18,483,447 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,495,820,000 after purchasing an additional 18,347,324 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the second quarter valued at approximately $358,101,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $165,271,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the second quarter worth $131,049,000. Finally, Phoenix Financial Ltd. bought a new position in Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth $130,415,000. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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