Mizuho Cuts Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Price Target to $105.00

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price target decreased by Mizuho from $110.00 to $105.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Mizuho currently has a neutral rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on ALB. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. 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 research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Albemarle from $79.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.84.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $90.01 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $10.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.37 and a beta of 1.58. Albemarle has a one year low of $71.97 and a one year high of $143.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $99.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $94.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.44 and a quick ratio of 1.58.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.80%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is presently -9.67%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total transaction of $255,328.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Albemarle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 52,016 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,969,000 after acquiring an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Albemarle by 21.4% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 36,288 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,534,000 after purchasing an additional 6,388 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Albemarle by 18.4% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 56,498 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,397,000 after purchasing an additional 8,777 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in Albemarle by 182.5% during the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 36,384 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,475,000 after buying an additional 23,506 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 2nd quarter valued at $392,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.