Community Bank N.A. Has $139,000 Holdings in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Community Bank N.A. cut its holdings in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 18.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,215 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Community Bank N.A.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $139,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ALB. CX Institutional acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter worth approximately $93,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 20.4% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 112,508 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $8,103,000 after buying an additional 19,099 shares during the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter worth approximately $303,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 11.9% in the first quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 15,757 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,670 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Albemarle stock opened at $96.26 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $82.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.60. Albemarle Corporation has a 52-week low of $49.43 and a 52-week high of $113.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.33 and a beta of 1.65.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.94. Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.87% and a negative net margin of 18.61%.The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Albemarle has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 12th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently -17.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank upped their target price on Albemarle from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Albemarle from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Albemarle from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Zacks Research upgraded Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Albemarle from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.41.

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.