The Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price has surged more than 100% in a year, but some brokers predict it could go higher.
The lithium miner's share price has rocketed 118% between market close on 20 April 2021 and 20 April 2022. However, in today's trade, Pilbara shares have slipped 2.75% and are currently trading at $2.83.
Let's take a look at the outlook for Pilbara Minerals.
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Outperform rating
Macquarie has retained an outperform rating on the company's shares with a price target of $4. This is 41% more than the current share price.
The broker is optimistic about Pilbara due to high lithium prices and the company's production targets. Lithium is a critical component of batteries for electric vehicles (EV).
However, the price target of $4 is slightly less than Macquarie's recent prediction of $4.30. Macquarie dropped its price target following Pilbara Minerals' quarterly update falling below expectations.
The company mines lithium from the Pilgangoora Lithium Tantalum Project in Western Australia.
Shipments for the March quarter finished at 58,383 dry metric tonnes (dmt) after a port delay. A 20,000 dmt cargo scheduled for late March instead left Port Hedland on 7 April.
Meanwhile, Citi analysts have upgraded the Pilbara Minerals share price to a "buy" with a $3.60 price target. This equates to a 27% upside on the share price at the time of writing. Citi is optimistic lithium prices could go higher. The broker believes it could take two years for the lithium market to balance, as my Foolish colleague James reported.
Pilbara Minerals price snapshot
The Pilbara Minerals share price has gained 118% in the past 12 months but lost 11% year to date. In the past week, the company's shares have dropped about 2%.
For perspective, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has returned around 8% over the past year.
Pilbara has a market capitalisation of about $8.4 billion based on the current share price.
