Short Interest in Kaiser Aluminum Co. (NASDAQ:KALU) Grows By 11.1%

Kaiser Aluminum Co. (NASDAQ:KALU) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 482,800 shares, an increase of 11.1% from the July 31st total of 434,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 144,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Currently, 3.1% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Kaiser Aluminum Stock Performance

NASDAQ KALU traded down $3.84 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $70.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 62,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 143,778. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $80.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $85.16. The firm has a market cap of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.48 and a beta of 1.35. Kaiser Aluminum has a 52 week low of $53.67 and a 52 week high of $102.42.

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.94 by ($0.29). The business had revenue of $773.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $773.89 million. Kaiser Aluminum had a return on equity of 6.84% and a net margin of 1.37%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Kaiser Aluminum will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kaiser Aluminum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 25th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.36%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 25th. Kaiser Aluminum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 89.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Keith Harvey acquired 2,588 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $77.23 per share, with a total value of $199,871.24. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 103,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,997,166.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kaiser Aluminum

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in Kaiser Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Kaiser Aluminum by 400.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 432 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Kaiser Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at $63,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its stake in Kaiser Aluminum by 79.7% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 861 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in Kaiser Aluminum by 941.4% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 906 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 819 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Benchmark raised their price objective on Kaiser Aluminum from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th.

Kaiser Aluminum Company Profile

Kaiser Aluminum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in manufacture and sale of semi-fabricated specialty aluminum mill products in the United States and internationally. It offers rolled, extruded, and drawn aluminum products used for aerospace and defense, aluminum beverage and food packaging, automotive and general engineering products.