CenterBook Partners LP Acquires New Shares in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

CenterBook Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 47,627 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,862,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle in the 3rd quarter valued at $138,723,000. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 48.5% in the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,870,110 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $179,870,000 after purchasing an additional 937,538 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Albemarle by 22,047.4% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 713,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $44,613,000 after buying an additional 710,589 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,482,000. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 1,278.8% in the 3rd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 440,608 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $35,725,000 after buying an additional 408,652 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $170.92 on Thursday. Albemarle Corporation has a twelve month low of $49.43 and a twelve month high of $195.68. The stock has a market cap of $20.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -29.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $160.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $117.44.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued 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). Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.09) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ALB. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Dbs Bank lifted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $158.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. HSBC raised Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Albemarle from $145.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $167.52.

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.