Pacer Advisors Inc. Acquires 6,234 Shares of Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB)

Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Albemarle Co. (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) by 71.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,948 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 6,234 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Albemarle were worth $1,287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Quarry LP increased its position in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in Albemarle by 606.5% in the 4th 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 bought a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. First Community Trust NA increased its stake in Albemarle by 55.0% during 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, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in Albemarle by 48.9% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 414 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were 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 approximately $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Albemarle from an "outperform" rating to an "inline" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Clarkson Capital started coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $112.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $113.95.

Albemarle Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of ALB stock traded down $2.50 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $79.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,618,819 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,263,653. Albemarle Co. has a 1-year low of $71.97 and a 1-year high of $143.19. The company has a market capitalization of $9.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.44 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $93.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.11.

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.