Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. Makes New Investment in Albemarle Corporation $ALB

Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 15,856 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,141,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Earnest Partners LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,630,394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $230,603,000 after buying an additional 207,770 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Albemarle by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,263,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $102,464,000 after acquiring an additional 22,856 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Albemarle by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,241,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $175,542,000 after acquiring an additional 453,881 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth $165,271,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in Albemarle during the 2nd quarter worth $131,049,000. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Trading Up 6.6%

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $142.99 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $16.87 billion, a PE ratio of 529.61 and a beta of 1.33. Albemarle Corporation has a 1 year low of $71.25 and a 1 year high of $221.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $132.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $160.73.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.20 by $0.55. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a net margin of 3.09% and a return on equity of 10.96%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Albemarle Corporation will post 11.63 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This is a positive change from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 600.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Scotiabank lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 10th. Berenberg Bank boosted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $153.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Rothschild & Co Redburn reduced their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $188.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $205.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Albemarle currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $190.26.

Albemarle 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.