American International Group Inc. Lowers Stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

American International Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,187 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,121 shares during the quarter. American International Group Inc.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $4,650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ALB. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 128.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,076,357 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,022,420,000 after purchasing an additional 3,979,885 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at $377,341,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,185,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $749,235,000 after purchasing an additional 1,667,164 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 31.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,800,219 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $838,025,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396,624 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 3,476,674 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $502,310,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245,719 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Stock Performance

ALB opened at $94.66 on Friday. Albemarle Co. has a 52-week low of $92.29 and a 52-week high of $247.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $11.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $119.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $124.55.

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

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $178.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Bank of America raised shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $137.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $168.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently 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.