Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Sold by Krane Funds Advisors LLC

Krane Funds Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 17.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,747 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 5,925 shares during the quarter. Albemarle makes up approximately 0.1% of Krane Funds Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Krane Funds Advisors LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $2,388,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in 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 last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% in the fourth 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 during the period. First Community Trust NA raised its holdings 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 last quarter. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on ALB. Truist Financial cut their target price on Albemarle from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Scotiabank lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.30.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB opened at $58.55 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $6.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.23 and a beta of 1.59. The business’s 50-day moving average is $77.46 and its 200-day moving average is $90.17. Albemarle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $55.13 and a fifty-two week high of $137.50.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.77%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -14.46%.

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.