Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also commented on ALB. Robert W. Baird set a $210.00 price target on shares of Albemarle and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Albemarle from $156.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Evercore raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $140.00 to $185.00 in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.24.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.3%

ALB stock opened at $165.80 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $171.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.31. Albemarle has a twelve month low of $49.43 and a twelve month high of $206.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.51 billion, a PE ratio of -28.84, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 10.74% and a positive return on equity of 0.41%. Albemarle’s revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($1.09) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Albemarle will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently -28.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $2,012,654.23. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 134,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,995,808.68. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Forty three Eighteen Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at about $952,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 43,685 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,179,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the period. Osbon Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $579,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 48.9% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 25,361 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,587,000 after acquiring an additional 8,332 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

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.