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In the latest market close, Albemarle (ALB) reached $116.88, with a +1.65% movement compared to the previous day. The stock exceeded the S&P 500, which registered a gain of 1.02% for the day. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 0.4%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq appreciated by 2.03%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the specialty chemicals company had lost 12.72% over the past month. This has lagged the Basic Materials sector's loss of 1.66% and the S&P 500's loss of 3.15% in that time.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Albemarle in its upcoming release. The company is slated to reveal its earnings on May 1, 2024. The company's upcoming EPS is projected at $0.36, signifying a 96.51% drop compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $1.41 billion, down 45.45% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $3.30 per share and revenue of $5.93 billion. These totals would mark changes of -85.17% and -38.29%, respectively, from last year.

It's also important for investors to be aware of any recent modifications to analyst estimates for Albemarle. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 4.87% upward. Albemarle currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

In terms of valuation, Albemarle is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 34.8. This represents a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 17.91.

We can additionally observe that ALB currently boasts a PEG ratio of 2.17. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Chemical - Diversified was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.1 at yesterday's closing price.

The Chemical - Diversified industry is part of the Basic Materials sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 93, finds itself in the top 37% echelons of all 250+ industries.

The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Remember to apply Zacks.com to follow these and more stock-moving metrics during the upcoming trading sessions.

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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.