Scotiabank Cuts Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Price Target to $200.00

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price target decreased by Scotiabank from $215.00 to $200.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector outperform” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Scotiabank’s price target suggests a potential upside of 77.76% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on ALB. Argus upped their target price on Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Albemarle from $236.00 to $224.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Zacks Research cut shares of Albemarle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.22.

Albemarle Stock Down 3.2%

Shares of NYSE:ALB traded down $3.67 on Tuesday, reaching $112.51. The company had a trading volume of 408,335 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,466,249. Albemarle has a twelve month low of $64.95 and a twelve month high of $221.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $147.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $167.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.05 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.18) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Albemarle will post 12.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Albemarle

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total value of $3,011,721.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,078,990.68. This 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Albemarle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV bought a new stake in Albemarle in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. BOKF NA increased its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 5,771.4% during the 3rd quarter. BOKF NA now owns 411 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Albemarle during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 536.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 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.