Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Price Target Cut to $150.00

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price objective reduced by research analysts at Scotiabank from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “sector outperform” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Scotiabank’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 13.96% from the company’s previous close. Scotiabank also issued estimates for Albemarle’s FY2024 earnings at $2.39 EPS.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Citigroup increased their target price on Albemarle from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. KeyCorp cut their price objective on Albemarle from $178.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Albemarle from $168.00 to $162.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $172.05.

Albemarle Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of Albemarle stock opened at $131.62 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $123.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.86, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.65. Albemarle has a 12-month low of $106.69 and a 12-month high of $247.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced 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). Albemarle had a net margin of 4.02% and a return on equity of 14.53%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $10.32 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 47.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Albemarle will post 2.86 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Kingfisher Capital LLC increased its holdings in Albemarle by 0.6% in the third quarter. Kingfisher Capital LLC now owns 14,117 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,401,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 14.1% during the third quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 688 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $117,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Patron Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 5.8% during the third quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 1,541 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 20,648 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,720,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Regatta Capital Group LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Regatta Capital Group LLC now owns 2,371 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $343,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Albemarle Company 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.