Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $1.24 EPS

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.55) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.31) by ($1.24), reports. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 6.38% and a negative net margin of 6.72%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.39 billion. Albemarle updated its FY 2024 guidance to EPS.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB stock traded down $2.52 during trading on Friday, hitting $97.41. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 697,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,960,437. The company has a market cap of $11.45 billion, a PE ratio of -20.79 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business has a fifty day moving average of $93.14 and a 200-day moving average of $100.56. Albemarle has a 52 week low of $71.97 and a 52 week high of $153.54.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -34.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALB has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $85.00 to $79.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price 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. Baird R W cut shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Berenberg Bank cut shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $160.00 to $83.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.58.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $209,333,000 after acquiring an additional 3,662,117 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 568,563 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the first quarter worth $49,007,000. PGGM Investments raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 261.6% in the first quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 413,492 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $54,473,000 after buying an additional 299,148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Albemarle by 115.7% during the second quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 542,200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $51,791,000 after purchasing an additional 290,862 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by 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.