Toronto Dominion Bank Sells 1,993 Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Toronto Dominion Bank trimmed its holdings in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 5.4% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 35,096 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 1,993 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $4,624,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. USCF Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 2,942.9% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 213 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total transaction of $114,251.79. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $921,875.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Albemarle news, SVP Mark Richard Mummert sold 843 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.53, for a total transaction of $114,251.79. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,802 shares in the company, valued at approximately $921,875.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO John Clarence Barichivich III sold 1,475 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.17, for a total transaction of $194,950.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $626,882.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on ALB. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Albemarle from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Albemarle to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $135.00 target price (down from $150.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $170.00 to $127.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.65.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $92.80 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $10.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.75, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $105.63 and its 200 day moving average is $116.71. Albemarle Co. has a 1 year low of $90.02 and a 1 year high of $215.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 1.91.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 4.02%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 47.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $10.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Albemarle Co. will post 1.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This is a boost from Albemarle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is presently 58.18%.

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.