Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-seven analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, sixteen have issued a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $99.3750.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ALB shares. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $88.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday. Argus upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $90.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Albemarle from $85.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price objective (up from $95.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Albemarle from $68.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th.

Albemarle Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of ALB opened at $115.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $13.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.35 and a beta of 1.70. Albemarle has a 12 month low of $49.43 and a 12 month high of $119.28. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $90.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.92) by $0.73. Albemarle had a negative return on equity of 1.87% and a negative net margin of 18.61%.The firm had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($1.55) EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Albemarle will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -101.89%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,672,272 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,056,697,000 after buying an additional 77,773 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,954,331 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $184,782,000 after acquiring an additional 59,104 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Albemarle by 48.5% in the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,870,110 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $179,870,000 after acquiring an additional 937,538 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Albemarle in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $138,723,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Albemarle by 28.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,538,706 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $110,814,000 after purchasing an additional 343,210 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

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.