Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA) by 11.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 597,864 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 74,090 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.33% of Alcoa worth $23,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Alcoa by 15.1% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Alcoa by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 7,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alcoa by 56.0% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,605 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares during the period. CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Alcoa by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,651 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Alcoa by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 153,900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,200,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. 82.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alcoa Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE:AA opened at $32.10 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market cap of $5.76 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.54 and a beta of 2.45. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.33. Alcoa Co. has a one year low of $23.07 and a one year high of $45.48.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The industrial products company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.84 billion. Alcoa had a negative net margin of 5.14% and a negative return on equity of 7.29%. Alcoa’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.35) EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Alcoa Co. will post 0.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Alcoa’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -10.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Alcoa from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $46.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $32.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. B. Riley boosted their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.40.

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.