Alberta Investment Management Corp Takes $1.53 Million Position in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 17,760 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,529,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $85,570,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in Albemarle by 9,108.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 574,805 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $54,440,000 after buying an additional 568,563 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Albemarle by 38.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,020,590 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $96,660,000 after acquiring an additional 282,194 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 67.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 658,145 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $62,333,000 after acquiring an additional 264,756 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 7,667.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 163,659 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $155,000,000 after acquiring an additional 161,552 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB stock opened at $81.26 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.95. Albemarle Co. has a one year low of $71.97 and a one year high of $143.19. The company’s 50-day moving average is $86.93 and its 200 day moving average is $92.05.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative net margin of 21.93% and a negative return on equity of 1.72%. Sell-side analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post 0.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $127.00 to $122.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI lowered Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.68.

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.