Wall Street Zen Upgrades Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) to Buy

Key Points

• Kaiser Aluminum has been upgraded from a "hold" to a "buy" rating by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen.
• Benchmark reduced its price target for Kaiser Aluminum from $100 to $74, while JPMorgan Chase raised it from $64 to $82.
• The company reported earnings of $1.21 per share for the last quarter, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.49.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on KALU. Benchmark reduced their price target on Kaiser Aluminum from $100.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Kaiser Aluminum from $64.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th.

Kaiser Aluminum Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:KALU traded down $0.85 during trading on Friday, reaching $74.45. 65,714 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 139,304. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 2.70. Kaiser Aluminum has a 12-month low of $46.81 and a 12-month high of $97.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.14 and a beta of 1.51. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $80.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $71.59.

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $823.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $786.70 million. Kaiser Aluminum had a return on equity of 8.03% and a net margin of 2.05%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kaiser Aluminum will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kaiser Aluminum Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 25th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 25th. Kaiser Aluminum's dividend payout ratio is currently 79.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kaiser Aluminum

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KALU. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 475.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 414 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Kaiser Aluminum during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 130.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 605 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 87.1% during the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 1,684 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 784 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kaiser Aluminum during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $121,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kaiser Aluminum

Kaiser Aluminum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in manufacture and sale of semi-fabricated specialty aluminum mill products in the United States and internationally. It offers rolled, extruded, and drawn aluminum products used for aerospace and defense, aluminum beverage and food packaging, automotive and general engineering products.