Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Shares Down 2.9% – Time to Sell?

Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA) shares traded down 2.9% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $36.80 and last traded at $36.89. 357,715 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 1,431,005 shares. The stock had previously closed at $37.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $41.00 price objective on shares of Alcoa in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Alcoa from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, B. Riley upgraded shares of Alcoa from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $41.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alcoa presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.73.

Alcoa Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $41.76 and a 200 day moving average of $37.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 2.47.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The industrial products company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.34. Alcoa had a negative net margin of 2.65% and a negative return on equity of 1.45%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($1.14) earnings per share. Alcoa’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Alcoa Co. will post 0.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 29th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. Alcoa’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -22.73%.

Insider Activity

In other Alcoa news, EVP Renato Bacchi sold 23,867 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.29, for a total value of $1,009,335.43. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,317 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,423,935.93. This trade represents a 29.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alcoa

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AA. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Alcoa by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,222 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Alcoa by 4.1% in the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 9,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $352,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Alcoa by 1.4% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 26,965 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,073,000 after buying an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its holdings in Alcoa by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 3,452 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $133,000 after buying an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eads & Heald Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Alcoa by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management now owns 8,403 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. 82.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Alcoa

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.