Wellington Management Group LLP Buys 30,541 Shares of Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 161.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,412 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 30,541 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $6,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ALB. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle during the second quarter valued at approximately $481,000. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,622,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at $84,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at $9,541,000. Finally, United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,245,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on ALB shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Albemarle from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Albemarle from $225.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Vertical Research raised shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $190.04.

Albemarle Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of ALB opened at $129.63 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.30 billion, a PE ratio of 480.11, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.33. Albemarle Corporation has a 12 month low of $71.25 and a 12 month high of $221.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $127.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $157.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.11 EPS. Albemarle’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.39 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.41 dividend. This is an increase from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently 607.41%.

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.