Concentric Capital Strategies LP Buys New Stake in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Concentric Capital Strategies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 91,881 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,996,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV bought a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. BOKF NA grew its position in Albemarle by 5,771.4% in the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Albemarle in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 536.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB stock opened at $166.31 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.61 billion, a P/E ratio of -48.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $180.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $168.25. Albemarle Corporation has a one year low of $55.90 and a one year high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 2.07 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Albemarle’s quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.39 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is presently -47.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,078,990.68. This trade represents a 15.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Evercore boosted their target price on Albemarle from $100.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. HSBC increased their price target on Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Vertical Research raised shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $236.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $203.04.

About Albemarle

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company’s bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world’s foremost chemical producers.