Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Upgraded to "Neutral" at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan upgraded Alcoa from "underweight" to "neutral" and raised its price target to $68, implying about a 5.94% upside from the prior close.
• Alcoa reported a quarterly EPS beat of $1.26 vs. $0.95 expected and revenue of $6.75 billion, while shares traded down about 2.6% to $64.19 amid heavy volume.
• Analyst coverage is mixed—four Buys, seven Holds and one Sell—with an overall average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $48.45, though some firms (UBS) have targets near $70.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $68.00 price objective on the industrial products company's stock, up from their previous price objective of $50.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 5.94% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on AA. B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Alcoa in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alcoa from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Zacks Research lowered Alcoa from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Alcoa in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Alcoa from $48.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $48.45.

Alcoa Trading Down 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:AA traded down $1.74 during trading on Friday, hitting $64.19. 1,615,137 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,961,505. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market cap of $16.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.51 and a beta of 1.85. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $61.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.56. Alcoa has a 1-year low of $21.53 and a 1-year high of $68.40.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.31. Alcoa had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business had revenue of $6.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. Alcoa's revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Alcoa will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alcoa

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Alcoa during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Alcoa by 52,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 526 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the third quarter worth $29,000. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Alcoa by 74.1% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 557 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter.

Alcoa Company Profile

Alcoa Corporation is a global industry leader in the production and management of aluminum, offering an integrated value chain that spans bauxite mining, alumina refining, primary aluminum smelting and the fabrication of value-added products. The company's operations are organized into segments that include raw material extraction, chemical processing and the manufacture of metal mill products and engineered solutions.

Alcoa's product portfolio serves diverse end markets such as aerospace, automotive, packaging, construction, electrical and industrial applications.

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