Fortem Financial Group LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Fortem Financial Group LLC cut its holdings in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,471 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 407 shares during the period. Fortem Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $1,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP increased its stake in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the period. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the third quarter worth $31,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Albemarle by 61.9% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 387 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 50.4% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Advisors LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $79.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $115.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total transaction of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. This represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Albemarle stock traded up $3.18 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $90.97. 1,609,174 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,007,612. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.44. The stock has a market cap of $10.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.43 and a beta of 1.58. Albemarle Co. has a 12-month low of $71.97 and a 12-month high of $143.19. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $99.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.18.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -9.67%.

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.