Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Acquired by Inspire Investing LLC

Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,550 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 656 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $1,166,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1,400.0% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its position in Albemarle by 606.5% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. First Community Trust NA raised its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% during the fourth quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 48.9% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 414 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at $7,457,296.64. This represents a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on ALB. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Albemarle from $79.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Clarkson Capital initiated coverage on shares of Albemarle in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $115.65.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Albemarle stock opened at $89.89 on Friday. Albemarle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $71.97 and a fifty-two week high of $143.19. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $97.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $93.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.44 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The company has a market cap of $10.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.58.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -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.