ALB vs SQM Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Compare Albemarle and SQM by Chilean vs global lithium production costs, EV battery supply contract quality, royalty structure differences, and which lithium company is better positioned for the long-term energy storage demand cycle.
Use this Albemarle vs SQM comparison to evaluate the key differences across valuation, growth, profitability, and risk before making an investment decision.
ALB and SQM are closely matched — they split the tracked metrics evenly. SQM has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+67.86% vs +36.43%), though ALB has the better forward P/E setup (9.53x vs 9.91x for SQM). Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for ALB (+62.62%) than for SQM (+24.32%).
| Metric | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 41.4 | 53.2 |
| AI rank | #1017 | #326 |
| Latest close | $114.85 | $68.73 |
| 1M return | -22.31% | -9.06% |
| 6M return | -39.40% | -17.09% |
| 1Y return | +36.43% | +67.86% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $13.72K (+37.2%) started 2025-07-25 | $16.98K (+69.8%) started 2025-07-24 |
| 5Y ago | $6.39K (-36.1%) started 2021-07-26 | $22.26K (+122.6%) started 2021-07-26 |
| 10Y ago | $16.85K (+68.5%) started 2016-07-25 | $64.9K (+549.0%) started 2016-07-25 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $14.24B | $19.63B |
| Trailing P/E | N/A | 24.03 |
| Forward P/E | 9.53 | 9.91 |
| Price/Sales | N/A | 3.70 |
| EV/Revenue | 3.21 | 4.44 |
| Analyst target | $196.41 | $85.45 |
| Target upside | +62.62% | +24.32% |
| Metric | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 32.70% | 69.80% |
| Earnings growth | N/A | 165.20% |
| EPS growth | N/A | +165.20% |
| FCF margin | +13.04% | +32.36% |
| Operating margin | 24.79% | N/A |
| Profit margin | -4.24% | 15.38% |
| ROIC proxy | -1.82% | 13.40% |
| Return on equity | -1.82% | 13.40% |
| Dividend yield | 1.34% | 1.49% |
| Beta | 1.35 | 0.99 |
| Debt/equity | 19.84 | 63.39 |
| Current ratio | 2.07 | 2.76 |
| Quick ratio | 1.11 | 1.93 |
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | +37.15% | +67.86% |
| CAGR | +37.28% | +67.92% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.75 | 1.19 | |
| Max drawdown | 46.73% | 29.91% | |
| Max daily drop | 11.49% | 9.03% | |
| Max wkly drop | 18.92% | 14.98% | |
| 5Y | Growth | -38.68% | +77.48% |
| CAGR | -9.33% | +12.17% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.01 | 0.39 | |
| Max drawdown | 83.90% | 69.69% | |
| Max daily drop | 19.91% | 18.57% | |
| Max wkly drop | 29.32% | 21.07% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +49.27% | +307.62% |
| CAGR | +4.09% | +15.09% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.23 | 0.44 | |
| Max drawdown | 83.90% | 72.98% | |
| Max daily drop | 19.91% | 18.57% | |
| Max wkly drop | 29.32% | 33.71% |
| Category | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| Company | ALB | SQM |
| Sector | Basic Materials | N/A |
| Industry | N/A | N/A |
| Core business | N/A | N/A |
| Investor focus | N/A | N/A |
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