This Lithium Company Surged To A 52-Week High Today — Here’s Why

• The company’s shares surged to a 52-week high on Thursday. 
• Albemarle projected that lithium demand in 2026 would grow between 15% and 40% as lithium ion battery demand continues to accelerate. 
• Earlier, UBS raised its price target on the company to $230 from $220 and kept a ‘Buy’ rating on the shares.

Shares of Albemarle Corp. (ALB) rallied more than 16% on Thursday, the most in a year, while also hitting a 52-week high of $215.34 in intraday trading, on the heels of soaring lithium demand for electric vehicles.

The world’s largest lithium supplier has been gaining from rising prices as well as high demand for its materials that are used widely in EV batteries and energy-storage systems.

The company supplies battery-grade lithium to many top automotive companies, including the BMW Group and Ford Motor Co. (F).

Lithium Surge

Chinese lithium carbonate prices have surged more than 134% in the past year, according to data from Trading Economics, even as demand for electric vehicles have risen amid rising surging oil prices due to the Iran war.

Meanwhile, in its fourth-quarter (Q4) earnings, the company projected that lithium demand in 2026 would grow between 15% and 40% as lithium ion battery demand continues to accelerate due to growing EV adoption and rapidly expanding grid-scale storage.

Street View

Earlier this week, Morgan Stanley raised the price target on Albemarle to $189 from $170, and kept an ‘Equal Weight’ rating on the shares, citing higher earnings per share estimates due to increased lithium price forecasts.

Meanwhile, UBS raised its price target on the company to $230 from $220 and kept a ‘Buy’ rating on the shares. The revised target represents an upside potential of about 6.7%.

Retail Stance

Meanwhile, on Stocktwits, retail sentiment around ALB stock improved from ‘bullish’ to ‘extremely bullish’ territory over the past 24 hours amid ‘high’ message volumes.

One bullish user predicted the company’s shares would soar to $250 soon.

ALB stock has gained more than 49% this year. Meanwhile, rival Lithium Americas Corp. (LAC) has gained 2% in the same time.

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