By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
Soltis Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB – Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 20,923 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,801,000.
A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Primecap Management Co. CA boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 3,833,984 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $363,117,000 after purchasing an additional 20,930 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Albemarle by 0.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,741,906 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $258,797,000 after buying an additional 14,874 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Albemarle by 38.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,020,590 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $96,660,000 after buying an additional 282,194 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $85,570,000. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in Albemarle by 28.7% in the third quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 705,719 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $66,839,000 after buying an additional 157,319 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ALB shares. Clarkson Capital started coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Albemarle in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. They set a “hold” rating and a $96.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Albemarle presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $113.95.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on ALB
Insider Activity at Albemarle
In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of Albemarle 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at $7,457,296.64. This trade represents a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Albemarle Stock Performance
Albemarle stock opened at $75.07 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $91.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Albemarle Co. has a 12-month low of $71.97 and a 12-month high of $143.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.59.
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.
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