Argus Reaffirms Hold Rating for Alcoa (NYSE:AA)

Key Points

• Argus reaffirmed its “hold” rating on Alcoa, while analysts’ consensus remains “hold” with an average price target of $58.23.
• Alcoa reported quarterly EPS of $1.82, beating the $1.51 consensus estimate, although revenue of $3.70 billion fell short of expectations; revenue increased 23.7% year over year.
• Alcoa shares opened at $40.68, well below their 52-week high of $84.38. Institutional investors own 82.39% of the company, while recent insider transactions included executive share sales.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold" rating reiterated by investment analysts at Argus in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Alcoa from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 17th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Alcoa from $76.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Freedom Broker decreased their price target on shares of Alcoa from $76.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Alcoa in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Alcoa from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alcoa has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.23.

Alcoa Stock Performance

NYSE AA opened at $40.68 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $46.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.38. The company has a market cap of $10.74 billion, a PE ratio of 7.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.74. Alcoa has a 1-year low of $35.12 and a 1-year high of $84.38.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 15th. The industrial products company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.31. Alcoa had a return on equity of 24.58% and a net margin of 10.77%. The firm had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Alcoa will post 6.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Alcoa news, EVP Tammi A. Jones sold 15,628 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.60, for a total value of $790,776.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,819 shares in the company, valued at $2,014,841.40. This represents a 28.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Renato Bacchi sold 700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.02, for a total value of $35,714.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 74,930 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,822,928.60. This trade represents a 0.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alcoa

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AA. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the second quarter valued at $1,528,523,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,179,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Alcoa by 3,061.2% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 63,098 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,185,000 after acquiring an additional 61,102 shares in the last quarter. XY Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Alcoa during the 1st quarter worth about $1,662,000. Finally, Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new position in Alcoa during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,613,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.39% of the company's stock.

Alcoa Company Profile

Alcoa Corporation NYSE: AA is a global producer of bauxite, alumina and aluminum. Its operations span the aluminum value chain, including bauxite mining, alumina refining, aluminum smelting, casting and the production of value-added aluminum products. These materials serve customers in industries such as transportation, building and construction, packaging, aerospace and industrial manufacturing.

The company operates across multiple regions, with assets and activities in North America, South America, Europe, Australia and other international markets.

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