Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Stock Gets Price Target Boost from CICC Research

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price target increased by CICC Research from $83.28 to $108.58 in a report issued on Wednesday. CICC Research‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 15.98% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho raised shares of Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Albemarle from $178.00 to $157.00 in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $129.00 to $119.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $155.00 to $131.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $152.63.

Albemarle Price Performance

Shares of ALB stock traded down $1.23 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $93.62. 751,427 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,457,464. Albemarle has a twelve month low of $89.77 and a twelve month high of $221.00. The firm has a market cap of $11.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.34. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $104.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 2.34.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.05. Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 10.40%. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.19) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Albemarle will post 10.70 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its stake in Albemarle by 348.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 440,083 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $46,552,000 after purchasing an additional 341,926 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in Albemarle during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,096,000. Ingalls & Snyder LLC grew its position in Albemarle by 52.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 3,031 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 1,043 shares in the last quarter. AlphaGrep UK Ltd raised its stake in Albemarle by 133.0% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaGrep UK Ltd now owns 4,431 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $469,000 after purchasing an additional 2,529 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in Albemarle by 212.3% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 17,422 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,843,000 after purchasing an additional 11,843 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

About Albemarle

Albemarle Corporation is a specialty chemicals company that produces lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. Its products serve industries including energy storage, transportation, electronics, petroleum refining and pharmaceuticals. The company supplies lithium compounds used in rechargeable batteries and other applications. It also makes bromine-based products for uses such as flame retardants and water treatment, along with catalysts used in refining petroleum. Albemarle traces its history to 1887 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.