Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Issues Earnings Results

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.09), Briefing.com reports. Albemarle had a net margin of 4.02% and a return on equity of 14.53%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $10.32 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 47.3% on a year-over-year basis. Albemarle updated its FY 2024 guidance to EPS.

Albemarle Price Performance

ALB stock traded up $2.80 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $128.10. 2,600,059 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,691,240. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $126.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Albemarle has a 1-year low of $106.69 and a 1-year high of $247.44. The company has a market cap of $15.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.58, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.65.

Albemarle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Albemarle’s payout ratio is currently 58.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ALB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Albemarle from $112.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Albemarle from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $191.00 to $188.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Albemarle in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America raised Albemarle from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $137.00 to $156.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $175.85.

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.