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

Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $53.00 to $47.00. The stock had previously closed at $33.34, but opened at $32.33. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Alcoa shares last traded at $32.57, with a volume of 859,648 shares changing hands.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Alcoa from $55.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Alcoa from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America increased their target price on Alcoa to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Alcoa to $43.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Alcoa from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Alcoa has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.92.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in Alcoa by 77.1% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 680 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Alcoa during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Alcoa during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Alcoa by 59.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Alcoa in the third quarter valued at $43,000. 82.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alcoa Stock Down 4.4 %

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $34.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.92 billion, a P/E ratio of -191.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 2.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.13. Alcoa had a return on equity of 5.54% and a net margin of 0.50%. As a group, research analysts predict that Alcoa Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. Alcoa’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -250.00%.

About Alcoa

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.