Naples Global Advisors LLC Sells 980 Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Naples Global Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 42,416 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 980 shares during the quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $3,668,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth $85,570,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 9,108.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 574,805 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,440,000 after acquiring an additional 568,563 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 38.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,020,590 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $96,660,000 after acquiring an additional 282,194 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 67.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 658,145 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $62,333,000 after purchasing an additional 264,756 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 7,667.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 163,659 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $155,000,000 after purchasing an additional 161,552 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.1 %

ALB stock opened at $76.57 on Thursday. Albemarle Co. has a 1-year low of $71.97 and a 1-year high of $143.19. The stock has a market cap of $9.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.59. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $90.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $92.48. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted 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 28.80% and a positive return on equity of 1.67%. Analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post -1.55 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI lowered Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. This trade represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle 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.