Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has raised its target price for Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) from $60.00 to $80.00, signaling a neutral rating despite potential downside of about 2.65% from the current price.
• Albemarle's latest earnings report showed a positive earnings per share of $0.11, surpassing estimates of a loss, although revenue was down 7.0% year-over-year.
• A consensus rating of "Hold" exists among analysts, with Albemarle's average price target at $89.17, reflecting mixed opinions on the stock's future performance.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $60.00 to $80.00 in a research note published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the specialty chemicals company's stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on ALB. TD Securities dropped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $65.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler set a $68.00 price target on shares of Albemarle and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Albemarle from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Mizuho set a $76.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $89.17.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB stock traded up $2.3570 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $81.2970. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,874,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,559,121. The company has a 50 day moving average of $70.86 and a 200 day moving average of $67.97. The stock has a market cap of $9.57 billion, a PE ratio of -8.72 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Albemarle has a 12-month low of $49.43 and a 12-month high of $113.91.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.83) by $0.94. The business had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.23 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 18.61% and a negative return on equity of 1.87%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.04 EPS. Albemarle has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Albemarle will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. Albemarle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.38%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALB. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 2,151.9% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 60,800 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,234,000 after purchasing an additional 58,100 shares in the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,858 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 67.2% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,325 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $631,000 after purchasing an additional 2,944 shares in the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 2,963 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 400,316 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $34,459,000 after purchasing an additional 13,641 shares in the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Albemarle

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.