Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Bought by PNC Financial Services Group Inc.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,874 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 756 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $3,449,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. USCF Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in Albemarle by 2,942.9% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 213 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total value of $114,251.79. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $921,875.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Albemarle news, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total value of $194,950.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,743 shares in the company, valued at $626,882.31. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total transaction of $114,251.79. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $921,875.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB stock opened at $99.54 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $121.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $125.04. The firm has a market cap of $11.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.61. Albemarle Co. has a 1-year low of $98.70 and a 1-year high of $247.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 1.91.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.09). Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 4.02%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $10.32 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 47.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Albemarle Co. will post 2.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ALB shares. Bank of America raised Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $137.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Albemarle from $168.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 15th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $178.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $165.11.

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.