Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Stake Trimmed by Koss Olinger Consulting LLC

Koss Olinger Consulting LLC cut its holdings in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,643 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 329 shares during the quarter. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $1,691,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ALB. Quarry LP boosted its position in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in Albemarle by 340.6% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in Albemarle by 606.5% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the period. First Community Trust NA boosted its position in Albemarle by 55.0% during the 4th quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB stock opened at $78.51 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market cap of $9.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.01 and a beta of 1.70. Albemarle Co. has a one year low of $67.23 and a one year high of $137.50.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative net margin of 21.93% and a negative return on equity of 1.72%. On average, analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is -14.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Clarkson Capital started coverage on Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho reduced their price target on Albemarle from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on Albemarle from $127.00 to $122.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Albemarle from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Albemarle has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.30.

About Albemarle

Albemarle Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets engineered specialty chemicals worldwide. It operates through three segments: Energy Storage, Specialties and Ketjen. The Energy Storage segment offers lithium compounds, including lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide, and lithium chloride; technical services for the handling and use of reactive lithium products; and lithium-containing by-products recycling services.