Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Upgraded at Truist Financial

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) was upgraded by analysts at Truist Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $205.00 price objective on the specialty chemicals company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $125.00. Truist Financial’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 18.84% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on ALB. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $88.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $118.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $125.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $144.54.

Albemarle Stock Up 5.8%

Shares of NYSE:ALB opened at $172.51 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $139.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $103.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 2.27. Albemarle has a 1-year low of $49.43 and a 1-year high of $179.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -108.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.22 and a beta of 1.41.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.19) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.92) by $0.73. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 0.43% and a positive return on equity of 0.10%. The business had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.55) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post -0.04 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 25.5% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,223 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 26.2% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $346,000 after buying an additional 996 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 1st quarter valued at $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 1st quarter worth $411,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 452.2% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,662 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,361 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Albemarle

Albemarle Corporation is a leading global specialty chemicals company primarily engaged in the production and distribution of lithium, bromine, and catalysts. Its lithium segment supplies key components used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics, and grid storage systems. The company’s bromine specialty products serve a wide range of industries, including oil and gas drilling fluids, fire safety solutions, and water treatment. In its catalysts division, Albemarle provides products for petroleum refining, chemical processing and emissions control.

Founded in 1994 as a spin-off from Ethyl Corporation, Albemarle has grown through strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions to become one of the world’s foremost chemical producers.