SQM - Albemarle vs. Sociedad Química y Minera: Which Top Lithium Stock Is the Better Buy?
2023-04-10 05:03:00 ET
Lithium stocks are getting clobbered so far in 2023. That isn't surprising. As is the case with all basic materials and mining companies, the price for the element -- a key ingredient in batteries for smartphones and electric vehicles (EVs) -- is highly sensitive to even small changes in supply and demand. Because of economic uncertainty in the year ahead, and supply of lithium catching up with and perhaps even exceeding demand, the price of lithium has fallen nearly 60% from its all-time highs in recent months.
Shares of top lithium producers Albemarle (NYSE: ALB) and Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM) are down 37% and 35%, respectively, from their all-time highs. If you believe lithium demand will remain strong this decade with the growing adoption of EVs, which of these stocks is a better buy-the-dip candidate right now?
Albemarle is a U.S.-based leader in the lithium industry. Coming off a record 2022, in which revenue more than doubled from 2021 to $7.3 billion and net income went from minimal to $2.7 billion, Albemarle has been busy as of late. In late March, it announced a new lithium processing facility in South Carolina to supply battery-grade lithium for the EV industry. A few days later, it also offered to acquire pre-revenue Australian lithium miner Liontown Resources for $3.4 billion.
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Albemarle vs. Sociedad Química y Minera: Which Top Lithium Stock Is the Better Buy?