Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Acquired by Nisa Investment Advisors LLC

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALBFree Report) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 52,230 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $4,517,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in Albemarle by 48.9% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 414 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. City Holding Co. lifted its position in Albemarle by 21.6% during the fourth quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 2,960 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its position in Albemarle by 606.5% during 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. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at $220,000. Finally, Beech Hill Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at $1,952,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE ALB opened at $88.71 on Friday. Albemarle Co. has a 12-month low of $71.97 and a 12-month high of $143.19. The stock has a market cap of $10.43 billion, a PE ratio of -5.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a 50-day moving average of $96.87 and a 200 day moving average of $93.66.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is presently -9.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALB has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Clarkson Capital started coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $79.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $115.65.

Read Our Latest Analysis on Albemarle

Insider Buying and Selling at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $255,328.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Albemarle Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Albemarle (NYSE:ALB)

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