Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB)’s interesting series of developments are underway around the US stock market these days. Now trading with a market value of 11.61B, the company has a mix of catalysts and obstacles that spring from the nature of its operations. As the day-to-day narrative ebbs and flows for this company, it is more important than ever to step back and get a bird’s eye view of the fundamental reality under the surface of this story.
Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) Fundamentals That Matter
It’s generally a good idea to start with the most fundamental piece of the picture: the balance sheet. The balance sheet health of any company plays a key role in its ability to meet its obligations and maintain the faith of its investment base. For ALB, the company currently has 692.19 million of cash on the books, which is offset by 39.22 million in current liabilities. The trend over time is important to note. In this case, the company’s debt has been falling. The company also has 7.56 billion in total assets, balanced by 3.61 billion in total liabilities, which should give you a sense of the viability of the company under any number of imagined business contexts.
Albemarle Corporation (ALB) saw -10.26 million in free cash flow last quarter, representing a quarterly net change in cash of -445.12 million. Perhaps most importantly where cash movements are concerned, the company saw about 121.55 million in net operating cash flow.
Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) Revenue Growth Potential
As far as key trends that demonstrate something of the future investment potential of this stock, we need to take a closer look at the top line, first and foremost. Last quarter, the company saw 821.63 million in total revenues. That represents a quarterly year/year change in revenues of 0.14 in sequential terms, the ALB saw sales decline by -0.04.
But what about the bottom line? After all, that’s what really matters in the end. Albemarle Corporation (ALB) is intriguing when broken down to its core data. The cost of selling goods last quarter was 515.65 million, yielding a gross basic income of 305.98 million. For shareholders, given the total diluted outstanding shares of 111.87 million, this means overall earnings per share of 1.18. Note, this compares with a consensus analyst forecast of 1.20 in earnings per share for its next fiscal quarterly report.
Is Albemarle Corporation (NYSE:ALB) Valuation Attractive
Looking ahead at valuations, according to the consensus, the next fiscal year is forecast to bring about 5.93 in total earnings per share. If we consider a median price to earnings ratio on the stock, that corresponds with a stock price of 17.50. However, one should always remember: the trends are more important than the forecasts. This continues to be an interesting story, and we look forward to updating it again soon on Albemarle Corporation.
