Pinnacle Associates Ltd. Has $2.87 Million Stake in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) by 11.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 35,378 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 4,676 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $2,868,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. PGGM Investments increased its stake in Albemarle by 10.8% in the third quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 1,185,005 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $96,080,000 after acquiring an additional 115,081 shares during the last quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the third quarter worth about $3,313,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in Albemarle by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 165,074 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $13,384,000 after buying an additional 21,257 shares during the period. AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the second quarter valued at $267,000. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 11.4% in the second quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 866,575 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,308,000 after purchasing an additional 88,457 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of ALB stock opened at $166.74 on Wednesday. Albemarle Corporation has a one year low of $49.43 and a one year high of $206.00. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $169.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $19.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -29.00, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.43.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.Albemarle’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($1.09) EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank upgraded shares of 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 research note on Monday, January 12th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $158.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Albemarle from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $165.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Finally, Stephens restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.24.

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.