One of the hottest areas of the market again this year has been the lithium industry. A number of ASX lithium stocks are smashing the market and recording very strong gains.
The good news for investors is that it may not be too late to invest in many of these lithium shares.
For example, the three ASX lithium stocks listed below have been rated as buys with plenty of upside potential. Here's what analysts are saying:
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Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE)
A note out of Morgans reveals that its analysts have retained their add rating and lifted their price target on this lithium giant's shares to $16.98. This follows the release of its third quarter update, which revealed strong pricing from tight markets.
Morgans recently said: "We maintain our ADD rating given the strong growth outlook for the company and the potential 24% [now 25.6%] upside to our valuation. AKE's diverse products and geographical mix adds opportunities to capture value as the market evolves. There is further potential upside that are not in our numbers such as Olaroz stage 3 and/or another lithium hydroxide plant. Should the lithium market continue to remain strong AKE still has a large amount of untapped growth potential."
Lake Resources N.L. (ASX: LKE)
The team at Bell Potter is positive on this lithium developer. It recently retained its speculative buy rating and lifted its price target materially to $2.83. This followed the announcement of a non-binding offtake agreement with auto giant Ford.
The broker commented: "LKE's key project is the 50ktpa lithium carbonate Kachi Lithium Brine Project in Argentina. This project is expected to employ direct lithium extraction technology which has enormous ESG benefits compared with incumbent brine and hard rock lithium production methods. With this development project, uncommitted product offtake and an independent share register, LKE has significant strategic appeal."
Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX: VUL)
Finally, this lithium developer is another that analysts are positive on. One of those is Germany-based Alster Research, which currently has a buy rating and $20.00 price target on the company's shares. Its analysts believe Vulcan is well-placed to service the European car market.
Alster commented: "We remain confident about Vulcan's operational development and improvement in becoming a provider of renewable energy and lithium with a zero-carbon footprint, which is why we reiterate our BUY recommendation."
