Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC Makes New $121,000 Investment in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $121,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Albemarle by 3.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,832 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 50.4% during 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. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 48.9% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 414 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. First Community Trust NA boosted its stake in Albemarle by 55.0% in the 4th quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, abrdn plc boosted its stake in Albemarle by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. abrdn plc now owns 42,529 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,031,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total transaction of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. This trade represents a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $81.26 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.26, a P/E/G 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. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $86.93 and its 200 day moving average is $92.05. Albemarle Co. has a one year low of $71.97 and a one year high of $143.19.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Albemarle from $99.00 to $86.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.68.

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.