Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Takes $696,000 Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,158 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $696,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Evexia Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Albemarle by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Evexia Wealth LLC now owns 2,088 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $387,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,468 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $349,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC now owns 5,769 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $816,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 2.3% during the first quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 2,952 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $133.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.71 billion, a PE ratio of 493.12 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.09. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $130.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $160.25. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $71.25 and a 1 year high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.55. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.11 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This is a positive change from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Albemarle’s payout ratio is currently 600.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on ALB. Vertical Research raised shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Albemarle from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Argus upped their target price on Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their target price on Albemarle from $188.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $190.04.

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.