Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after B. Riley lowered their price target on the stock from $44.00 to $43.00. The stock had previously closed at $25.07, but opened at $23.80. B. Riley currently has a buy rating on the stock. Alcoa shares last traded at $23.54, with a volume of 1,948,369 shares changing hands.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Alcoa from $55.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Alcoa from $47.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. HC Wainwright raised their target price on Alcoa to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Alcoa to $43.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.17.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alcoa

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Alcoa during the 4th quarter worth $259,273,000. Sourcerock Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alcoa by 319.1% in the fourth quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 1,978,009 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $74,729,000 after buying an additional 1,506,009 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Alcoa by 46.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,549,608 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $96,324,000 after acquiring an additional 813,214 shares during the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP grew its stake in Alcoa by 29.6% during the 4th quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 2,998,311 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $113,276,000 after acquiring an additional 684,505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Alcoa by 488.2% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 802,547 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,320,000 after acquiring an additional 666,117 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.39% of the company’s stock.

Alcoa Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.45. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $36.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.02 billion, a PE ratio of -145.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 2.28.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The industrial products company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $3.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.58 billion. Alcoa had a net margin of 0.50% and a return on equity of 5.54%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Alcoa Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Alcoa Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Alcoa’s payout ratio is currently -250.00%.

Alcoa Company Profile

Alcoa Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells bauxite, alumina, and aluminum products in the United States, Spain, Australia, Iceland, Norway, Brazil, Canada, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Alumina and Aluminum. It engages in bauxite mining operations; and processes bauxite into alumina and sells it to customers who process it into industrial chemical products, as well as aluminum smelting and casting businesses.