WealthPLAN Partners LLC Has $2.47 Million Stock Holdings in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

WealthPLAN Partners LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 31.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 13,757 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 6,353 shares during the quarter. WealthPLAN Partners LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $2,470,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV acquired a new stake in Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. BOKF NA grew its stake in Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ALB shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $236.00 to $224.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.58.

Albemarle Trading Down 3.4%

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $129.31 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $167.69 and its 200 day moving average is $169.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.25 billion, a PE ratio of -37.92 and a beta of 1.34. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $64.95 and a 1 year high of $221.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 5.00% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.18) earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post 13.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -47.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at $16,078,990.68. The trade was a 15.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company’s bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world’s foremost chemical producers.