Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 26.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 211,515 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 76,597 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC owned 0.18% of Albemarle worth $20,033,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 9,108.7% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 574,805 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,440,000 after acquiring an additional 568,563 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 115.7% during the second quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 542,200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $51,791,000 after purchasing an additional 290,862 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 282,194 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew 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 valued at $62,333,000 after purchasing an additional 264,756 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 7,667.4% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 163,659 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $155,000,000 after buying an additional 161,552 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,457,296.64. This represents a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Price Performance

ALB stock opened at $104.97 on Friday. Albemarle Co. has a 1 year low of $71.97 and a 1 year high of $153.54. The firm has a market cap of $12.34 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.27 and a beta of 1.56. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $101.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.44.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on ALB shares. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $85.00 to $79.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $114.47.

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.