UPDATE: JP Morgan Downgrades Albemarle Corporation to Neutral on Valuation

JP Morgan downgraded Albemarle Corporation

from Overweight to Neutral and raised the price target from $62.00 to $67.00. JP Morgan commented, "Albemarle shares have been excellent performers since mid-September (rising 19% versus 2% for the S&P Index) as investors aggressively purchased companies sensitive to the benefits of a cyclical upturn in the global economy. ALB was trading at 6.4x 2013E EBITDA in midSeptember. The shares now trade at 8.7x 2013E EBITDA (incl. net pension liability) and are more fairly valued, in our view. Moreover, the earnings profile of the company has probably marginally weakened over that period. We have increased our December 2013 price target from $62 to $67 to reflect rising valuations for chemical stocks generally." Albemarle Corporation closed at $64.67 on Wednesday.