Naples Global Advisors LLC Sells 980 Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Naples Global Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 42,416 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 980 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Albemarle were worth $3,668,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the period. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the third quarter worth about $31,000. First Community Trust NA boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% in the fourth quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.1 %

ALB opened at $76.57 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $9.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.59. Albemarle Co. has a 12 month low of $71.97 and a 12 month high of $143.19. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $90.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.48. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a negative net margin of 28.80% and a positive return on equity of 1.67%. On average, equities analysts expect that Albemarle Co. will post -1.55 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ALB. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI cut Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $114.24.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total transaction of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.