Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Stock Rating Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Zacks reports.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on ALB. UBS Group decreased their target price on Albemarle from $150.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Albemarle from $161.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Albemarle in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Albemarle from $109.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 6th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.05.

Albemarle Price Performance

ALB stock opened at $94.98 on Monday. Albemarle has a 52 week low of $89.77 and a 52 week high of $221.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $106.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $147.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.05. Albemarle had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 10.40%. The firm 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 company posted ($0.19) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Albemarle will post 10.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Investors of record on Friday, December 18th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 18th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Albemarle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.61%.

Institutional Trading of Albemarle

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Addison Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Albemarle during the second quarter worth $28,000. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 1st quarter valued at $54,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Albemarle in the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 3,700.0% in the 3rd quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the period. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new position in Albemarle in the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.