UPDATE: Bank of America Merrill Lynch Downgrades Albemarle to Underperform

Bank of America Merrill Lynch is out with its report today on Albemarle ALB, downgrading ALB to Underperform from Buy. In its report, Bank of America Merrill Lynch writes, "Our rating moves to Underperform from Buy. Our constructive thesis has been predicated on two pillars: ongoing strength in catalysts and earnings growth in the bromine chain fueled by price increases and cyclical volume recovery. The latter is now at greater risk in our view in the event of a recession, now seen as a 35% probability by BofAML's economics team." Bank of America Merrill Lynch has a $65 PO on ALB. Shares of ALB closed Tuesday at $56.03, up 8.88% from Monday's close.