UBS Group Cuts Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Price Target to $86.00

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price objective dropped by stock analysts at UBS Group from $99.00 to $86.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. UBS Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 12.64% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on ALB. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $115.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $150.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Albemarle in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. They set a “hold” rating and a $96.00 price target for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Albemarle currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $113.14.

Albemarle Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Albemarle stock traded down $0.25 during trading on Thursday, hitting $76.35. The stock had a trading volume of 1,122,659 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,337,503. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.48. The company has a market capitalization of $8.97 billion, a PE ratio of -4.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Albemarle has a 1 year low of $71.97 and a 1 year high of $143.19.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The specialty chemicals company reported ($1.09) 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Albemarle will post -1.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In related news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.38% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Albemarle

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quarry LP increased its position in Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 270 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Albemarle by 340.6% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its holdings in Albemarle by 606.5% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Albemarle in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Albemarle by 61.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 387 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. 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.