ALB vs SQM Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Albemarle and SQM are both major global lithium producers supplying the electric vehicle battery supply chain, but Albemarle operates a globally diversified production footprint across multiple continents, while SQM's lithium production is concentrated in Chile's low-cost Atacama salt flat brine deposits, exposing it more directly to Chilean regulatory policy.
ALB offers globally diversified lithium production with additional specialty chemicals exposure, while SQM offers low-cost Chilean brine production concentrated in a single, highly productive region. The decision depends on whether you prefer geographic diversification or a low-cost, single-region cost advantage.
SQM holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. SQM leads on both 1-year return (+74.65%) and forward P/E quality (11.37x vs 12.16x for ALB), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. SQM leads on both revenue growth (136.70%) and operating margin (48.82%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for ALB (+25.63%) than for SQM (+11.36%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Want exposure to a globally diversified lithium production footprint
- Value additional specialty chemicals businesses that provide earnings diversification
- Prefer reduced reliance on a single country's regulatory and royalty framework
- Believe long-term supply contracts with battery manufacturers provide revenue visibility
- Want exposure to low-cost lithium brine extraction from Chile's Atacama salt flat
- Believe SQM's long operational history provides durable extraction cost advantages
- Are comfortable with concentration risk tied to Chilean regulatory and royalty policy
- See diversified chemical and fertilizer product lines as a complementary revenue stream
| Metric | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 41.6 | 63.5 |
| AI ranki | #988 | #99 |
| Latest closei | $126.28 | $76.43 |
| 1M returni | -3.68% | +9.11% |
| 6M returni | -25.53% | +9.46% |
| 1Y returni | +54.87% | +74.65% |
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 | $15.4K (+54.0%) started 2025-09-08 | $17.66K (+76.6%) started 2025-09-04 |
| 5Y ago | $5.62K (-43.8%) started 2021-09-09 | $22.11K (+121.1%) started 2021-09-07 |
| 10Y ago | $20.79K (+107.9%) started 2016-09-09 | $65.5K (+555.0%) started 2016-09-06 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $16.21B | $21.83B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 508.74 | 15.73 |
| Forward P/Ei | 12.16 | 11.37 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | 3.25 |
| EV/Revenuei | 3.23 | 3.74 |
| Analyst targeti | $172.56 | $85.11 |
| Target upsidei | +25.63% | +11.36% |
| Metric | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 31.10% | 136.70% |
| Earnings growthi | N/A | 646.40% |
| EPS growthi | N/A | +646.40% |
| FCF margini | +22.59% | +38.94% |
| Operating margini | 27.71% | 48.82% |
| Profit margini | 3.79% | 20.62% |
| ROIC proxyi | 2.65% | 21.82% |
| Return on equityi | 2.65% | 21.82% |
| Dividend yieldi | 1.19% | 7.51% |
| Betai | 1.32 | 1.02 |
| Debt/equityi | 18.98 | 61.25 |
| Current ratioi | 2.09 | 2.60 |
| Quick ratioi | 1.25 | 1.90 |
Over the past year, ALB and SQM have moved strongly in the same direction (correlation of 0.79), based on daily returns.
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 | Growthi | +54.00% | +74.65% |
| CAGRi | +54.17% | +74.71% | |
| Volatilityi | 58.52% | 48.46% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.96 | 1.30 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.42 | 2.00 | |
| Max drawdowni | 47.52% | 29.91% | |
| Current drawdowni | 41.43% | 19.23% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 15.24% | 9.92% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 21.26% | 13.09% | |
| Max daily dropi | 11.49% | 9.03% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 17.77% | 14.98% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | -46.03% | +77.53% |
| CAGRi | -11.61% | +12.19% | |
| Volatilityi | 54.82% | 49.78% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.03 | 0.39 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.05 | 0.57 | |
| Max drawdowni | 83.90% | 69.69% | |
| Current drawdowni | 59.96% | 21.97% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 46.79% | 35.20% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 52.54% | 40.99% | |
| Max daily dropi | 19.91% | 18.57% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 29.32% | 21.07% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +84.17% | +311.43% |
| CAGRi | +6.30% | +15.21% | |
| Volatilityi | 48.59% | 46.28% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.28 | 0.44 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.39 | 0.64 | |
| Max drawdowni | 83.90% | 72.98% | |
| Current drawdowni | 59.96% | 21.97% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 36.06% | 30.72% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 43.49% | 37.13% | |
| Max daily dropi | 19.91% | 18.57% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 29.32% | 33.71% |
| Category | ALB | SQM |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Albemarle Corporation | Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. |
| Sector | Basic Materials | Materials |
| Industry | Specialty Chemicals | Specialty Chemicals |
| Core business | A global specialty chemicals company and one of the world's largest lithium producers, operating lithium extraction and processing facilities across multiple continents to supply battery-grade lithium for electric vehicle and energy storage markets. | A Chilean chemical and mining company that is one of the world's largest lithium producers, extracting lithium from brine deposits in Chile's Atacama salt flat alongside other specialty chemical and fertilizer product lines. |
| Investor focus | Lithium price cycle trends and their effect on earnings, production capacity expansion execution, and long-term supply contract quality with battery and automotive customers. | Lithium price cycle trends, Chilean regulatory and royalty framework changes affecting lithium extraction rights, and production volume growth from its Atacama operations. |
- Globally diversified lithium production footprint spanning multiple continents reduces reliance on any single geographic source
- Established relationships with battery and automotive manufacturers support long-term supply contract visibility
- Diversified specialty chemicals businesses beyond lithium provide some earnings diversification during lithium price downturns
- Low-cost lithium brine extraction from the Atacama salt flat provides a structural cost advantage over higher-cost lithium sources
- Long operating history in Chilean lithium production has built deep operational expertise in brine extraction techniques
- Diversified specialty chemical and fertilizer product lines provide some earnings diversification beyond lithium
- Lithium prices have historically been highly cyclical, creating significant earnings volatility tied to global battery demand and supply trends
- Large-scale production capacity expansion projects carry execution risk and require substantial ongoing capital investment
- Global lithium supply growth from multiple producers and new entrants could pressure long-term pricing
- Chilean government regulatory and royalty framework changes affecting lithium extraction rights create policy uncertainty
- Concentration of lithium production in a single country and salt flat provides less geographic diversification than multinational lithium producers
- Lithium prices have historically been highly cyclical, creating significant earnings volatility tied to global battery demand trends
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