Cibc World Markets Corp Increases Holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Cibc World Markets Corp grew its holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 299.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 63,684 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 47,755 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $5,482,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 1,400.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 340.6% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 50.4% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 100.0% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Trading Up 1.5 %

ALB opened at $79.70 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.95. The stock has a market cap of $9.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.12 and a beta of 1.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $82.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.17. Albemarle Co. has a one year low of $67.23 and a one year high of $137.50.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative net margin of 21.93% and a negative return on equity of 1.72%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Albemarle Co. will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is -14.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Clarkson Capital assumed coverage on Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $112.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Albemarle from $96.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Albemarle from $73.00 to $68.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their target price on Albemarle from $127.00 to $122.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.30.

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.