Allstate Corp Takes $305,000 Position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Allstate Corp bought a new position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 3,549 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $305,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1,400.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Albemarle by 340.6% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 50.4% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Finally, First Community Trust NA increased its holdings in Albemarle by 55.0% in the 4th quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Performance

NYSE ALB opened at $72.33 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $78.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.52. Albemarle Co. has a 52-week low of $67.23 and a 52-week high of $137.50. The firm has a market cap of $8.50 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.46 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

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

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is -14.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ALB. Mizuho decreased 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. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.30.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.