Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Shares Up 6.5% - Still a Buy?

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 6.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $30.09 and last traded at $30.01. 2,010,443 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 64% from the average session volume of 5,583,649 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.17.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on AA. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Alcoa in a report on Thursday, May 15th. B. Riley reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $38.00 price target (down previously from $43.00) on shares of Alcoa in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their target price on Alcoa to $31.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $26.00 price target (down from $58.00) on shares of Alcoa in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Alcoa from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alcoa has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $42.33.

Alcoa Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $27.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.74 billion, a PE ratio of 9.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.16 and a beta of 2.26.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The industrial products company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.42. Alcoa had a net margin of 6.79% and a return on equity of 18.56%. The business had revenue of $3.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.58 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Alcoa will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Alcoa's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.05%.

Institutional Trading of Alcoa

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Drummond Knight Asset Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Alcoa in the 4th quarter valued at about $19,646,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Alcoa by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 21,602 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $816,000 after buying an additional 948 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Alcoa by 630.4% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 28,955 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $883,000 after acquiring an additional 24,991 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of Alcoa by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 26,437 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $999,000 after acquiring an additional 3,758 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Alcoa by 59.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,051 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the period.

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.

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