Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Given New $129.00 Price Target at Royal Bank Of Canada

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada lowered Albemarle’s price target from $157 to $129 but maintained an “outperform” rating, implying 32.73% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst views remain mixed, though the stock carries a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $180.74 target price; 16 analysts rate it a Buy, eight a Hold, and two a Sell.
• Albemarle shares fell 0.8% to $97.19, while the company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations with $3.75 EPS and $1.74 billion in revenue, up 31.1% year over year.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $157.00 to $129.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock. Royal Bank Of Canada's price objective points to a potential upside of 32.73% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on ALB. Zacks Research downgraded Albemarle from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley reiterated a "reduce" rating and issued a $161.00 target price on shares of Albemarle in a report on Monday, August 10th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Albemarle in a report on Monday. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $109.00 price target on the stock. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $180.74.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:ALB traded down $0.78 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $97.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 393,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,450,565. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $120.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.09. The company has a market capitalization of $11.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 358.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.36. Albemarle has a 12 month low of $88.01 and a 12 month high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.20 by $0.55. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 3.09%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 31.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Albemarle will post 11.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Addison Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 190.1% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 293 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the first quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in Albemarle in the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new position in Albemarle in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation NYSE: ALB is a global specialty chemicals company that develops, manufactures and markets materials used in energy storage, transportation, consumer products and industrial applications. The company is best known for its lithium business, which supplies lithium compounds used in rechargeable batteries for electric vehicles, portable electronics and energy-storage systems.

Albemarle also produces bromine-based specialty chemicals used in areas such as fire safety, water treatment, pharmaceutical manufacturing and other industrial processes.

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