Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $129.72, but opened at $136.00. Albemarle shares last traded at $134.4950, with a volume of 426,180 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ALB shares. Argus raised their price target on shares of Albemarle from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Albemarle from $245.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Vertical Research raised Albemarle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $224.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Albemarle from $236.00 to $224.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.58.

Albemarle Stock Up 0.8%

The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.06 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.34. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $172.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.42.

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $1.71. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Albemarle had a negative net margin of 5.00% and a positive return on equity of 5.22%. The company’s revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.18) EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Albemarle Corporation will post 12.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Albemarle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is currently -47.51%.

Insider Transactions at Albemarle

In other Albemarle news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 16,393 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.72, for a total transaction of $3,011,721.96. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,519 shares in the company, valued at $16,078,990.68. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Evexia Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Albemarle by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Evexia Wealth LLC now owns 2,088 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $387,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Albemarle by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,468 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC now owns 5,769 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $816,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp increased its stake in Albemarle by 2.3% during the first quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 2,952 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $530,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Albemarle by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $508,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.87% of the company’s stock.

Albemarle Company Profile

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.