Mirabella Financial Services LLP Takes $1.51 Million Position in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Mirabella Financial Services LLP bought a new position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 18,563 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,505,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. BOKF NA boosted its stake in Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its position in Albemarle by 36.8% during the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 413 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the period. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total transaction of $2,012,654.23. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,995,808.68. The trade was a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Performance

ALB opened at $163.15 on Friday. Albemarle Corporation has a 52-week low of $49.43 and a 52-week high of $206.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap of $19.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.43. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $171.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $130.54.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.53) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.40) by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($1.09) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently -28.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Berenberg Bank set a $153.00 target price on Albemarle in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $156.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded Albemarle from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $200.00 in a report on Monday, January 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.24.

About Albemarle

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.