Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Hits New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after Berenberg Bank raised their price target on the stock from $75.00 to $135.00. Berenberg Bank currently has a hold rating on the stock. Albemarle traded as high as $164.98 and last traded at $157.9030, with a volume of 5621889 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $146.13.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $159.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price target (up from $95.00) on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Baird R W raised shares of Albemarle from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, nineteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $121.40.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ALB. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. raised its stake in Albemarle by 2.8% during the third quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. now owns 3,332 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $270,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 18.2% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 677 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 36.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 413 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 10,160 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $824,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,730 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Stock Up 8.1%

The firm has a market cap of $18.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -99.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.18 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $125.07 and a 200-day moving average of $95.69. The company has a current ratio of 2.27, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.92) by $0.73. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.10% and a negative net margin of 0.43%.The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.55) EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Albemarle Corporation will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 12th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is currently -101.89%.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.