AQR Capital Management LLC Buys 594,311 Shares of Alcoa $AA

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC has significantly increased its stake in Alcoa, raising its holdings by 370.4% to 754,746 shares worth approximately $22 million.
• Analysts' ratings for Alcoa vary, with six analysts$41.75.
• Alcoa recently reported earnings per share of $0.39, exceeding expectations, along with a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share.

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Free Report) by 370.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 754,746 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 594,311 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.29% of Alcoa worth $22,235,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Alcoa by 134.7% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 906 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Alcoa in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Alcoa in the first quarter worth $40,000. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alcoa by 30.7% in the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Alcoa in the first quarter worth $57,000.

Alcoa Trading Up 3.0%

AA traded up $0.97 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $33.26. 8,311,403 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,144,855. Alcoa has a 52 week low of $21.53 and a 52 week high of $47.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $30.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 2.26.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.10. Alcoa had a return on equity of 19.18% and a net margin of 7.86%.The business had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.16 EPS. The business's revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Alcoa will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Alcoa's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AA has been the subject of several research reports. B. Riley upped their target price on shares of Alcoa from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Alcoa from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Alcoa from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Alcoa from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Alcoa from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $41.75.

Alcoa 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.