Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Makes New Investment in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. bought a new position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 21,264 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,724,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Albemarle by 10,050.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 406 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 7,257.1% in the second quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 515 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 248.0% during the second quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 689 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 491 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Albemarle during the second quarter valued at $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Price Performance

Albemarle stock opened at $161.41 on Monday. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $49.43 and a 1 year high of $164.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $128.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.82. The company has a market cap of $19.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -101.51, a PEG ratio of 6.78 and a beta of 1.41.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.19) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.92) by $0.73. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 0.43% and a positive return on equity of 0.10%. Albemarle’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($1.55) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 12th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -101.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on ALB. Mizuho raised their price objective on Albemarle from $110.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on shares of Albemarle from $135.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $125.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $125.28.

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.