Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Cut to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $230.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their price target on Albemarle from $188.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $244.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $190.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.58.

Albemarle Stock Down 0.2%

Albemarle stock opened at $135.27 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $170.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $169.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.07. The company has a market cap of $15.95 billion, a PE ratio of -39.67, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.34. Albemarle has a fifty-two week low of $64.24 and a fifty-two week high of $221.00.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $1.71. Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 5.22% and a negative net margin of 5.00%.The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.18) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 32.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post 12.98 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,078,990.68. This trade represents a 15.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ALB. Nordea Investment Management AB purchased a new position in Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at $6,171,000. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter worth $1,055,000. Three Seasons Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the fourth quarter valued at about $873,000. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 493.3% in the fourth quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 84,011 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $11,883,000 after buying an additional 69,850 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinkerton Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the fourth quarter worth about $2,785,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

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.