Berenberg Bank Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Stock

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Berenberg Bank from $75.00 to $135.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Berenberg Bank’s price target indicates a potential downside of 16.42% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $159.00 price target on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price objective on Albemarle from $135.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Scotiabank upped their target price on Albemarle from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.28.

Albemarle Stock Performance

NYSE ALB opened at $161.52 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $126.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $96.15. The company has a market capitalization of $19.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -101.58, a PEG ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 1.41. Albemarle has a 1-year low of $49.43 and a 1-year high of $164.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 2.27 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.92) by $0.73. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 0.10% and a negative net margin of 0.43%.The company had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($1.55) earnings per share. Albemarle’s quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Albemarle will post -0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 165,074 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $13,384,000 after buying an additional 21,257 shares during the last quarter. AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $267,000. Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 11.4% during the 2nd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 866,575 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $54,308,000 after acquiring an additional 88,457 shares in the last quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Albemarle during the second quarter worth $1,850,000. Finally, Leibman Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 14.6% in the second quarter. Leibman Financial Services Inc. now owns 48,871 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,063,000 after purchasing an additional 6,237 shares during the period. 92.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Albemarle

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.