Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Purchased by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 26.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 99,375 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,988 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $9,413,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Primecap Management Co. CA raised its holdings in Albemarle by 0.5% in the third quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 3,833,984 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $363,117,000 after buying an additional 20,930 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 10.2% in the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,568,602 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $149,833,000 after acquiring an additional 144,705 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,311,331 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $125,264,000 after acquiring an additional 29,721 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its position in Albemarle by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,198,730 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $114,503,000 after purchasing an additional 127,615 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in 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 valued at $96,660,000 after purchasing an additional 282,194 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Albemarle from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $79.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $114.47.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB opened at $109.07 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.44. Albemarle Co. has a 12 month low of $71.97 and a 12 month high of $153.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $100.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.07.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is currently -9.67%.

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.