Nykredit A S Invests $78.12 Million in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 578,547 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $78,121,000. Nykredit A S owned 0.49% of Albemarle as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Addison Advisors LLC bought a new position in Albemarle during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 190.1% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 293 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 121.5% during the fourth quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 299 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the first quarter worth about $54,000. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Albemarle Stock Performance

ALB opened at $137.65 on Thursday. Albemarle Corporation has a 52-week low of $71.25 and a 52-week high of $221.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.24 billion, a PE ratio of 509.83, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.09. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $128.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.04.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 3.09%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. This is a boost from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 600.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ALB shares. Vertical Research raised Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Zacks Research downgraded Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $188.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Berenberg Bank boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $190.04.

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.