Meyer Handelman Co. Trims Position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Meyer Handelman Co. decreased its position in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 13.3% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 4,900 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 750 shares during the quarter. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $646,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,083,522 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,034,787,000 after buying an additional 82,874 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in 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 worth $1,022,420,000 after purchasing an additional 3,979,885 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake in Albemarle by 31.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,800,219 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $838,025,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396,624 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Albemarle by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,185,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $749,235,000 after purchasing an additional 1,667,164 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA raised its stake in 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 worth $502,310,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245,719 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Price Performance

ALB opened at $94.66 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $119.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.55. The firm has a market cap of $11.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.42, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.61. Albemarle Co. has a twelve month low of $92.29 and a twelve month high of $247.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 4.02% and a return on equity of 14.53%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $10.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 47.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post 2.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $168.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $157.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (down previously from $150.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $165.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Albemarle

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 related news, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total transaction of $194,950.75. Following the completion of 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $114,251.79. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 6,802 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $921,875.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.