Robert W. Baird Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) Stock

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) had its price target lifted by analysts at Robert W. Baird from $79.00 to $103.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 15.83% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Albemarle from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Albemarle from $171.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Albemarle from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of Albemarle from $132.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. One investment 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.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $115.74.

Albemarle Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE:ALB opened at $88.92 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $101.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.18. Albemarle has a one year low of $71.97 and a one year high of $153.54. The firm has a market cap of $10.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.31 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO J Kent Masters sold 2,525 shares of Albemarle stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 73,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,457,296.64. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Albemarle by 38.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,020,590 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $96,660,000 after buying an additional 282,194 shares in the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in Albemarle by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 705,719 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $66,839,000 after acquiring an additional 157,319 shares during the period. MBB Public Markets I LLC increased its holdings in Albemarle by 392.6% in the 2nd quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 7,916 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $756,000 after acquiring an additional 6,309 shares in the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC raised its position in Albemarle by 32.4% during the third quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 521,537 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $49,395,000 after acquiring an additional 127,549 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Albemarle by 28.5% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 423,049 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $40,067,000 after purchasing an additional 93,718 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.