Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Shares Gap Up to $92.77

Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $92.77, but opened at $95.52. Albemarle shares last traded at $98.12, with a volume of 1,617,720 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on ALB shares. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Albemarle from $122.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $168.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Bank of America raised shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $137.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $157.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $155.78.

Albemarle Trading Down 4.0 %

The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market capitalization of $11.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.01, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $117.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $123.78.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.09). Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 4.02%. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $10.32 earnings per share. Albemarle’s revenue was down 47.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Albemarle Co. will post 2.07 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.18%.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In other news, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total transaction of $194,950.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,743 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $626,882.31. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total value of $114,251.79. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $921,875.06. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total value of $194,950.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $626,882.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. WFA Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in Albemarle during the first quarter valued at $25,000. USCF Advisers LLC raised its position in Albemarle by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new stake in Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Tyler Stone Wealth Management bought a new stake in Albemarle in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 2,942.9% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 213 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

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.