Sigma Planning Corp Has $387,000 Stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Sigma Planning Corp cut its stake in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,085 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 981 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $387,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Community Trust NA acquired a new stake in Albemarle during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. CVA Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Albemarle by 610.0% in the second quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 284 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Albemarle in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 61.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 387 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 2,142.1% during the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 426 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ALB shares. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on Albemarle from $135.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $114.47.

Albemarle Price Performance

ALB opened at $103.53 on Friday. Albemarle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.97 and a fifty-two week high of $153.54. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $95.52 and a 200 day moving average of $100.06. The firm has a market cap of $12.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.18 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.44.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -9.67%.

About Albemarle

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.