Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Given New $222.00 Price Target at Oppenheimer

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its target price raised by Oppenheimer from $216.00 to $222.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,MarketScreener reports. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on ALB. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $156.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Truist Financial set a $210.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Friday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $145.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.84.

Albemarle Stock Performance

NYSE:ALB opened at $185.05 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $171.21 and its 200-day moving average is $142.70. Albemarle has a 52-week low of $50.85 and a 52-week high of $206.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.23. The company has a market cap of $21.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -32.18, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.43.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.53) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.40) by ($0.13). Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.41% and a negative net margin of 10.74%.The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($1.09) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Albemarle’s payout ratio is -28.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 11,783 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $2,012,654.23. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,628 shares in the company, valued at $22,995,808.68. The trade was a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PGGM Investments lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 10.8% during the third quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 1,185,005 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $96,080,000 after purchasing an additional 115,081 shares in the last quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the third quarter worth approximately $3,313,000. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 14.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 165,074 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $13,384,000 after purchasing an additional 21,257 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,171,000. Finally, Bard Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Albemarle by 45.3% during the third quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 42,895 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,478,000 after purchasing an additional 13,380 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.