Amundi Cuts Stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Amundi lowered its position in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 18.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 693,647 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 155,892 shares during the period. Amundi’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $60,488,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 50.4% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in Albemarle by 48.9% in 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 last quarter. First Community Trust NA grew its stake in Albemarle by 55.0% in the fourth quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Moser Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 5.3% in the third quarter. Moser Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,925 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 3,908 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Trading Down 4.8 %

Albemarle stock opened at $72.70 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Albemarle Co. has a 52 week low of $67.23 and a 52 week high of $137.50. The company has a market capitalization of $8.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.49 and a beta of 1.70. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $83.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.74.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative net margin of 21.93% and a negative return on equity of 1.72%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently -14.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALB has been the topic of several analyst reports. KeyCorp cut their target price on Albemarle from $127.00 to $122.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Albemarle from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup cut their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Albemarle from $99.00 to $86.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.05.

About Albemarle

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.