Albemarle Q2 Profit Beats View, Lifts FY Outlook; Shares Up 5%

(RTTNews) - Albemarle Corp. (ALB) Wednesday reported a second-quarter profit that trumped Wall Street estimates, but revenues fell short of expectations. Moving ahead, the company lifted its full-year earnings outlook and reaffirmed revenue guidance. Shares gained 5% following the news.

Albemarle's second-quarter net income dropped to $154.2 million or $1.45 per share from $302.5 million or $2.73 per share last year.

Adjusted earnings for the quarter rose to $1.55 per share from $1.36 per share last year. On average, 21 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimate earnings of $1.44 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude one-time items.

Second-quarter sales rose 4% to $885.1 million from $853.9 million last year. Analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $892.37 million for the quarter.

"All of our businesses met or exceeded our expectations this quarter with volume and pricing providing year-over-year growth in Lithium and Bromine," said Luke Kissam, Albemarle's CEO.

"The recently announced amendments to our transaction with Mineral Resources Limited and our decision to delay indefinitely certain lithium expansion projects will allow us to reduce capital expenditures significantly while still meeting the commitments we have made to our customers."

Lithium sales rose 2.3% to $324.8 million, while Bromine Specialties sales rose 15.8% to $255.4 million. Catalysts sales slipped 6.5% to $266.3 million.

Looking forward to full year, the company now expects adjusted earnings outlook of $6.25 to $6.65 per share, up from prior forecast of $6.10 to $6.50 per share. The company continues to see revenues of $3.65 to $3.85 billion. Analysts currently estimate earnings of $6.18 per share and revenues of $3.67 billion for the year.

ALB closed Wednesday's trading at $67.59, up $2.14 or 3.27%, on the NYSE. The stock further gained $3.35 or 4.96% in the after-hours trade.