Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Given New $85.00 Price Target at Truist Financial

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price objective lowered by equities research analysts at Truist Financial from $96.00 to $85.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Truist Financial’s target price indicates a potential upside of 5.32% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Albemarle from $103.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Albemarle from $109.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI cut Albemarle from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on Albemarle from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Albemarle presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $112.62.

Albemarle Price Performance

ALB traded up $1.46 during trading on Friday, hitting $80.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 764,223 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,420,050. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.59. Albemarle has a twelve month low of $71.97 and a twelve month high of $143.19. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $89.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $92.39. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last issued 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, equities research analysts forecast 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 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 directly owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,457,296.64. This represents a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Albemarle

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of Albemarle by 1,400.0% during the 3rd 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. lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 340.6% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in Albemarle by 606.5% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Albemarle in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, First Community Trust NA raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 55.0% in the fourth 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 period. 92.87% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Albemarle

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.