Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Upgraded to "Neutral" at UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS Group has upgraded Albemarle's stock rating from "sell" to "neutral" and increased its price target from $62.00 to $89.00, indicating a potential 9.47% upside.
• The company's earnings report showed an EPS of $0.11, surpassing estimates while revenue decreased 7.0% year-over-year.
• Institutional investors own 92.87% of Albemarle's stock, with notable increased stakes from several hedge funds in recent quarters.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at UBS Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $89.00 target price on the specialty chemicals company's stock, up from their previous target price of $62.00. UBS Group's price target would suggest a potential upside of 4.87% from the company's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $74.00 price target on shares of Albemarle and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Robert W. Baird reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. TD Securities decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Mizuho set a $76.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $86.47.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Albemarle stock traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $84.87. The company had a trading volume of 1,731,221 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,224,362. The company's 50-day moving average is $73.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.19. Albemarle has a twelve month low of $49.43 and a twelve month high of $113.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.47. The company has a market cap of $9.99 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.11 and a beta of 1.63.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.83) by $0.94. The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.23 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 18.61% and a negative return on equity of 1.87%. Albemarle's quarterly revenue was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.04 EPS. Albemarle has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post -0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 50,326 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,624,000 after purchasing an additional 4,872 shares in the last quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC increased its holdings in Albemarle by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 243,036 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $17,503,000 after acquiring an additional 12,014 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Albemarle during the 1st quarter valued at about $271,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Albemarle by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 184,426 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $13,282,000 after acquiring an additional 6,487 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Albemarle during the 1st quarter valued at about $303,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.87% of the company's stock.

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.