Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Hold

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on AA. Wells Fargo & Company set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Alcoa in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Argus set a $73.00 price objective on shares of Alcoa in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Alcoa from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $64.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, B. Riley Financial lifted their target price on shares of Alcoa from $78.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $64.27.

Alcoa Price Performance

AA stock opened at $68.42 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $65.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $56.24. Alcoa has a 12-month low of $25.83 and a 12-month high of $75.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.32 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The industrial products company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by ($0.20). Alcoa had a net margin of 8.27% and a return on equity of 12.57%. The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.15 EPS. Alcoa’s revenue was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Alcoa will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alcoa

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mirabella Financial Services LLP lifted its position in Alcoa by 12,233.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP now owns 40,082,462 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,318,312,000 after acquiring an additional 39,757,462 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Alcoa by 211.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,254,017 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $332,338,000 after acquiring an additional 4,247,559 shares during the period. Castle Hook Partners LP purchased a new position in Alcoa during the 4th quarter valued at about $210,874,000. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Alcoa during the 4th quarter valued at about $173,412,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Alcoa by 153.4% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,134,425 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $219,703,000 after acquiring an additional 2,503,132 shares during the period.

Alcoa Company Profile

Alcoa Corporation is a global industry leader in the production and management of aluminum, offering an integrated value chain that spans bauxite mining, alumina refining, primary aluminum smelting and the fabrication of value-added products. The company’s operations are organized into segments that include raw material extraction, chemical processing and the manufacture of metal mill products and engineered solutions.

Alcoa’s product portfolio serves diverse end markets such as aerospace, automotive, packaging, construction, electrical and industrial applications.