Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Given New $170.00 Price Target at Rothschild & Co Redburn

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price target reduced by equities researchers at Rothschild & Co Redburn from $188.00 to $170.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 25.96% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Albemarle from $216.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Vertical Research upgraded Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.58.

Albemarle Trading Up 4.0%

Shares of ALB stock opened at $134.96 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -39.58, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $173.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.41. Albemarle has a twelve month low of $60.64 and a twelve month high of $221.00.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 87,519 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 14.6% during the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,630,394 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $230,603,000 after purchasing an additional 207,770 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Albemarle by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,475,832 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $119,710,000 after acquiring an additional 52,698 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Albemarle by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,263,734 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $102,464,000 after acquiring an additional 22,856 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Albemarle by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,241,106 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $175,542,000 after acquiring an additional 453,881 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Albemarle in the fourth quarter worth approximately $165,271,000. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.