Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Coverage Initiated at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Albemarle (NYSE:ALB – Get Rating) in a report released on Wednesday, The Fly reports. The brokerage set an “overweight” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on ALB. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $325.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 12th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $275.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 4th. Bank of America raised their price target on Albemarle from $262.00 to $332.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 3rd. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Albemarle from $298.00 to $305.00 in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Albemarle in a report on Wednesday, October 12th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $294.37.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB traded up $6.39 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $270.98. 1,255,839 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,528,772. The company has a market cap of $31.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.45. Albemarle has a 1 year low of $169.93 and a 1 year high of $334.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $248.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $259.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $7.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.84 by $0.66. Albemarle had a return on equity of 26.84% and a net margin of 27.77%. The business had revenue of $2.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 151.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Albemarle will post 20.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In related news, EVP Karen G. Narwold sold 2,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.66, for a total transaction of $642,735.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,444 shares in the company, valued at $3,269,093.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Albemarle news, CFO Scott Tozier sold 1,719 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $378,180.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 63,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,944,480. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karen G. Narwold sold 2,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.66, for a total value of $642,735.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,444 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,269,093.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 17,681 shares of company stock worth $5,310,662 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ALB. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Clarius Group LLC lifted its position in Albemarle by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 1,061 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $230,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Albemarle by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 29,524 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,403,000 after acquiring an additional 1,081 shares in the last quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Albemarle by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,425 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,031,000. 82.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Albemarle Company Profile

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Albemarle Corp. engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of chemicals for consumer electronics, petroleum refining, utilities, packaging, construction, transportation, pharmaceuticals, crop production, food-safety, and custom chemistry services. It operates through the following segments: Lithium, Bromine, Catalysts, and All Other.