Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 17,130,000 shares, a growth of 7.5% from the May 31st total of 15,940,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,700,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.3 days.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB stock traded up $2.22 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $99.28. The company had a trading volume of 558,942 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,068,918. The stock has a market cap of $11.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.31, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $116.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $122.73. Albemarle has a 52-week low of $92.29 and a 52-week high of $247.44.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Albemarle had a net margin of 4.02% and a return on equity of 14.53%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 47.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $10.32 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $157.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Berenberg Bank raised Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Albemarle from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Albemarle from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.78.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 128.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 7,076,357 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,022,420,000 after buying an additional 3,979,885 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 176.6% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,588,986 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $209,333,000 after acquiring an additional 3,662,117 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth $377,341,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,185,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $749,235,000 after purchasing an additional 1,667,164 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 31.7% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,800,219 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $838,025,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396,624 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

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.