Albemarle Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:ALB)

Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) saw some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock investors bought 24,330 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 116% compared to the typical daily volume of 11,265 put options.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $58.55 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $77.46 and its 200 day moving average is $90.14. 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 has a 52 week low of $57.53 and a 52 week high of $137.50. The stock has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a PE ratio of -5.23 and a beta of 1.59.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) earnings per share 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Albemarle 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 issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -14.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ALB. Evercore ISI cut Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Albemarle from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Albemarle from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Clarkson Capital initiated coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $73.00 to $68.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.30.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 1,400.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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 during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. First Community Trust NA increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% during 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 period. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new position in Albemarle in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.