Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Alcoa Call Options (NYSE:AA)

Key Points

• Alcoa saw a significant increase in call options trading on Wednesday, with purchases rising by 127%, totaling 48,796 call options compared to an average of 21,526.
• The company reported a 39% increase in earnings per share (EPS) in its latest earnings announcement, beating consensus estimates with $0.39 EPS compared to an expected $0.29.
• Alcoa declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, providing an annualized yield of 1.1%, with a payout ratio of 10.44%.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 48,796 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 127% compared to the typical volume of 21,526 call options.

Alcoa Stock Performance

NYSE AA traded up $1.52 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $37.05. 5,935,823 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,994,515. The business's fifty day moving average price is $31.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 2.20. Alcoa has a 52 week low of $21.53 and a 52 week high of $47.77.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The industrial products company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. Alcoa had a net margin of 7.86% and a return on equity of 19.18%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.16 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Alcoa will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. Alcoa's payout ratio is 10.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Alcoa from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Alcoa from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Alcoa from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Alcoa from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Alcoa from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $42.46.

Institutional Trading of Alcoa

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wedmont Private Capital bought a new stake in Alcoa during the third quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Alcoa during the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Alcoa by 20.4% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,689 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares in the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp lifted its holdings in Alcoa by 46.6% during the second quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 205,817 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,074,000 after purchasing an additional 65,460 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in Alcoa by 22.8% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 29,235 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $863,000 after purchasing an additional 5,428 shares in the last quarter.

Alcoa Company 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.

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