DeZwarteRidder schreef op 7 december 2017 16:31:
Albemarle Corp. plunged the most in 18 months as the world’s largest lithium producer forecast disappointing earnings amid rising exploration costs and lower prices for the mineral used in electric-vehicle batteries.
Lithium profit the rest of this year will probably decline from the record level in the second quarter, Chief Financial Officer Scott Tozier said Tuesday on a conference call to discuss financial results. The company’s profit forecast for 2017 suggested earnings will probably fall short of analysts’ estimates in the second half.
Sales of less expensive forms of the mineral will climb the rest of this year because of contractual commitments, leading to a “slight” decrease in average prices than in the past quarter, Tozier said. Expenses are set to increase as the company accelerates efforts to identify new lithium sources in the U.S., Argentina, Chile and Australia, Chief Executive Officer Luke Kissam said on the call.
“The weaker-than-expected outlook is due to rising lithium exploration costs,” Jim Sheehan, an analyst at Suntrust Robinson Humphrey Inc. said in a note to clients. That will more than offset a modest boost from a weaker dollar, he said.
Albemarle fell 5.2 percent to $116.70 at 11:09 a.m. in New York after sliding as much as 7.6 percent for the biggest intraday drop since February 2016. The shares posted the sharpest decline on the S&P 500 Index.