Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Given New $225.00 Price Target at Bank of America

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its target price raised by Bank of America from $190.00 to $225.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $189.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Truist Financial set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a report on Friday, March 6th. Berenberg Bank set a $153.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Albemarle from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $174.80.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of ALB opened at $198.56 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $23.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.43. Albemarle has a 12-month low of $53.33 and a 12-month high of $215.71. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $174.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.38. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued 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). The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 10.74% and a positive return on equity of 0.41%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($1.09) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Albemarle will post 8.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio is -28.17%.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

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 transaction of $2,012,654.23. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,628 shares in the company, valued at $22,995,808.68. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Albemarle

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ALB. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the third quarter worth approximately $138,723,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth approximately $165,271,000. Phoenix Financial Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth approximately $130,415,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 4,338.5% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 738,430 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $104,444,000 after buying an additional 721,793 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Albemarle by 22,047.4% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 713,812 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $44,613,000 after buying an additional 710,589 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.