Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Given New $157.00 Price Target at Royal Bank of Canada

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its target price lifted by investment analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $138.00 to $157.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price target points to a potential upside of 20.62% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $135.00 in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Albemarle in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Albemarle from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Vertical Research downgraded Albemarle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price target on shares of Albemarle from $178.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.80.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.6 %

ALB stock traded up $2.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $130.16. 1,388,869 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,210,390. The stock has a market cap of $15.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.65. Albemarle has a fifty-two week low of $106.69 and a fifty-two week high of $247.44. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $123.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.29 billion. Albemarle had a net margin of 4.02% and a return on equity of 14.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 47.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $10.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Albemarle will post 2.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Assetmark Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. WFA Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. USCF Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. USCF Advisers LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in Albemarle by 2,942.9% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 213 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.