Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Lowers Stake in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 17.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 54,267 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 11,079 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $9,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at $165,271,000. Phoenix Financial Ltd. bought a new position in Albemarle in the 4th quarter worth $130,415,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Albemarle by 4,338.5% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 738,430 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $104,444,000 after buying an additional 721,793 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 22,047.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 713,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $44,613,000 after buying an additional 710,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Samlyn Capital LLC bought a new stake in Albemarle during the third quarter valued at about $47,088,000. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total value of $3,011,721.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,078,990.68. The trade was a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Albemarle Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of ALB stock opened at $128.56 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $161.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $168.83. Albemarle Corporation has a 52 week low of $64.95 and a 52 week high of $221.00. The stock has a market cap of $15.16 billion, a P/E ratio of -37.70 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share 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 last year, the business posted ($0.18) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 32.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 13.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -47.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on ALB. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $188.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Albemarle from $253.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Albemarle from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Berenberg Bank upped their price target on Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.48.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.