Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Shares Sold by Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC

Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lessened its stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,179 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 293 shares during the period. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,952,000. First Community Trust NA lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 55.0% during the 4th quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Albemarle by 42.4% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,552 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $564,000 after acquiring an additional 1,951 shares in the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $228,000. Finally, Leibman Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 50.5% during the 4th quarter. Leibman Financial Services Inc. now owns 38,964 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,354,000 after acquiring an additional 13,075 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total transaction of $255,328.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ALB shares. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $79.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada increased 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. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Albemarle has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.65.

Albemarle Trading Down 3.5 %

NYSE:ALB opened at $94.03 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.58. Albemarle Co. has a 1-year low of $71.97 and a 1-year high of $143.19.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.72%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently -9.67%.

Albemarle Profile

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.