Kaiser Aluminum Corporation (NASDAQ:KALU) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts give Kaiser Aluminum a “Moderate Buy” consensus: Three analysts rate the stock a buy, one a strong buy, one a hold and one a sell. The average 12-month price target is $167.25.
• Recent earnings exceeded expectations: Kaiser reported quarterly EPS of $5.53 versus the $2.66 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 52.7% year over year to $1.26 billion.
• The company maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.77 per share, equal to $3.08 annually and a 2.0% yield; institutional investors own 99.29% of outstanding shares.

Shares of Kaiser Aluminum Corporation (NASDAQ:KALU - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the six ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has given a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $167.25.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Kaiser Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group raised shares of Kaiser Aluminum from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $179.00 to $184.00 in a report on Monday, August 31st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Kaiser Aluminum from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Kaiser Aluminum from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Kaiser Aluminum from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd.

Kaiser Aluminum Price Performance

Shares of KALU stock opened at $155.08 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.50 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Kaiser Aluminum has a 1-year low of $73.08 and a 1-year high of $199.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $164.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $160.25.

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $5.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.66 by $2.87. The business had revenue of $1.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. Kaiser Aluminum had a net margin of 5.49% and a return on equity of 24.71%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 52.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.21 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Kaiser Aluminum will post 10.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kaiser Aluminum Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 24th. Kaiser Aluminum's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.83%.

Institutional Trading of Kaiser Aluminum

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KALU. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Kaiser Aluminum during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,353,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 0.9% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 171,369 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $20,652,000 after purchasing an additional 1,508 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 157,078 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $18,042,000 after purchasing an additional 19,291 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 125,386 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $14,402,000 after purchasing an additional 5,460 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 32.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 101,510 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $12,233,000 after purchasing an additional 24,853 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

About Kaiser Aluminum

Kaiser Aluminum Corporation is a manufacturer of semi-fabricated aluminum products. The company produces flat-rolled, extruded and forged aluminum products used by manufacturers in the aerospace, automotive, packaging, industrial and other specialized markets.

Its product portfolio includes aerospace plate and sheet, automotive body sheet, extruded shapes, rod and bar, forged components, and other customized aluminum products. Kaiser Aluminum serves original equipment manufacturers and suppliers that use aluminum for its light weight, strength, durability and recyclability.

The company traces its history to 1946 and operates manufacturing facilities in the United States.

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