Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Price Target Cut to $92.00 by Analysts at Robert W. Baird

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price objective cut by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $103.00 to $92.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s target price indicates a potential upside of 20.15% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. KeyCorp lowered their price target on Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Albemarle from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $96.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $114.24.

Albemarle Stock Performance

Shares of ALB stock traded up $0.87 on Wednesday, hitting $76.57. 3,407,905 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,373,626. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $90.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.59. Albemarle has a one year low of $71.97 and a one year high of $143.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.00 billion, a PE ratio of -4.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.49). Albemarle had a positive return on equity of 1.67% and a negative net margin of 28.80%. Sell-side analysts expect that Albemarle will post -1.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.12, for a total value of $255,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 73,747 shares in the company, valued at $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at $85,570,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Albemarle by 9,108.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 574,805 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $54,440,000 after buying an additional 568,563 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,405,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,594,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,256,294,000 after buying an additional 359,014 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in shares of Albemarle by 36.7% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,192,527 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $102,653,000 after acquiring an additional 320,150 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.