Citigroup Has Lowered Expectations for Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Stock Price

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price target decreased by equities research analysts at Citigroup from $115.00 to $85.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Citigroup’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 11.01% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Mizuho reduced their price target on Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Clarkson Capital initiated coverage on Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI cut shares of Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Albemarle in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $96.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $113.50.

Albemarle Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ALB traded up $0.87 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $76.57. 3,392,958 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,373,626. Albemarle has a fifty-two week low of $71.97 and a fifty-two week high of $143.19. The stock has a market cap of $9.00 billion, a price-to-earnings 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. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $90.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.59.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Albemarle 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 transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ALB. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Albemarle by 1,400.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Albemarle by 340.6% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in shares of Albemarle by 606.5% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Albemarle in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, First Community Trust NA lifted its stake in Albemarle by 55.0% in the 4th quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 400 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

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.