KCM Investment Advisors LLC Sells 4,448 Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

KCM Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 33.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,948 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 4,448 shares during the quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $770,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP increased its holdings in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 340.6% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% in 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 in the last quarter. First Community Trust NA raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% in the fourth quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 12.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $58.55 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $77.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $90.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.95. The company has a market capitalization of $6.89 billion, a PE ratio of -5.23 and a beta of 1.59. Albemarle Co. has a 52 week low of $57.53 and a 52 week high of $137.50.

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

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.77%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is -14.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Albemarle from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $73.00 to $68.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on Albemarle from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.