Albemarle Corporation vs NUTRIEN LTD., two Chemicals stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Nutrien blends crop nutrients with an ag-retail arm, and that mix kept it profitable through the fertilizer downturn at an 8.54% net margin and a 9.06% return on equity, with a 7.17% free-cash yield and no net debt. Albemarle, a pure lithium producer, had no such cushion: this cycle's price slump drove net margin to -4.24% and left no earnings multiple to cite. Nutrien trades near book at 1.17; Albemarle at 1.57 with a thinner 3.63% free-cash yield and light 0.19 leverage. The contrast is about diversification. Nutrien's retail earnings smooth the commodity swing that hit Albemarle head-on.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | ALB | NTR |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $126.04 | $65.42 |
| Market cap | $14.9B | $31.8B |
| Sector | Chemicals | Chemicals |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| P/E | — | 14.0 |
| P/B | 1.48 | 1.25 |
| P/S | 2.72 | 1.18 |
| EV/EBITDA | 31.5 | 5.1 |
| Revenue growth | +9.5% | +1.6% |
| Gross margin | 35.1% | 31.1% |
| Operating margin | 16.3% | 13.9% |
| Net margin | -4.2% | 8.5% |
| Return on equity | -2.3% | 9.1% |
| Return on assets | -1.5% | 4.4% |
| Return on invested capital | -1.0% | 11.1% |
| FCF yield | 3.9% | 6.7% |
| Dividend yield | 1.3% | — |
| Debt / equity | 0.19 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 2.07 | 1.34 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 7.00 | 1.87 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 8 / 9 |
Each week boothcheck ranks the stocks whose prices are betting on the most. Read the most stretched bets archive →
boothcheck is also on Android. Get the app on Google Play →
The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.