J Kent Masters Sells 2,525 Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Stock

Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Albemarle Trading Up 3.8 %

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $104.96 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $101.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.59. The company has a market capitalization of $12.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.27 and a beta of 1.56. 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 $153.54.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -9.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALB has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Albemarle from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $105.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Albemarle from $115.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $114.47.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 9,108.7% in 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 purchasing an additional 568,563 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 115.7% in the second quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 542,200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $51,791,000 after acquiring an additional 290,862 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Albemarle by 38.2% during the third 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 in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 67.3% in the third 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 boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 7,667.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 163,659 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $155,000,000 after purchasing an additional 161,552 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.