Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Given New $140.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup raised Albemarle’s price target to $140 from $125 and maintained a Buy rating, implying 41.95% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst views are mixed, but MarketBeat’s consensus is Moderate Buy with an average price target of $174.64; 15 analysts rate the stock Buy, nine Hold, and one Sell.
• Albemarle beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $2.58 and revenue of $1.55 billion, up 18.8% year over year. Shares traded down 0.6% to $98.62 on Monday.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by equities researchers at Citigroup from $125.00 to $140.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock. Citigroup's price target would indicate a potential upside of 41.95% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on ALB. Argus lowered their price target on shares of Albemarle from $230.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Albemarle from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Albemarle from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Albemarle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 5th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $174.64.

Albemarle Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE ALB traded down $0.63 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $98.62. The company had a trading volume of 1,117,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,469,501. Albemarle has a one year low of $89.77 and a one year high of $221.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $107.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.87. The stock has a market cap of $11.64 billion, a PE ratio of 23.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.34.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.52 billion. Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 10.40%. Albemarle's revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.19) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post 11.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ALB. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 15,408.6% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 358,715 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $37,945,000 after buying an additional 356,402 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 1,487.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 21,241 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,247,000 after acquiring an additional 19,903 shares during the period. IFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 39.4% during the 3rd quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 1,128 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd. raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 1,034.0% in the 3rd quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. now owns 17,429 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,844,000 after acquiring an additional 15,892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 56,770.5% in the 3rd quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 227,482 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $24,063,000 after acquiring an additional 227,082 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Albemarle Company Profile

Albemarle Corporation is a specialty chemicals company that produces lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. Its products serve industries including energy storage, transportation, electronics, petroleum refining and pharmaceuticals.

The company supplies lithium compounds used in rechargeable batteries and other applications. It also makes bromine-based products for uses such as flame retardants and water treatment, along with catalysts used in refining petroleum.

Albemarle traces its history to 1887 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.

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