Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Receives “Underweight” Rating from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated their underweight rating on shares of Alcoa (NYSE:AA) in a research note released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a $50.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $45.00.

AA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $33.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Alcoa from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on Alcoa from $42.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Alcoa from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Alcoa from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alcoa presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.75.

Alcoa Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of NYSE AA opened at $61.01 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $45.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $36.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $15.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 1.95. Alcoa has a 1 year low of $21.53 and a 1 year high of $65.01.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.15) by $0.13. The company had revenue of $2.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Alcoa had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 8.91%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.57 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alcoa will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 4th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 4th. Alcoa’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.24%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Alcoa by 7.0% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,295 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $283,000 after acquiring an additional 606 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Alcoa by 1,098.0% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,704 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 10,727 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Alcoa by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 646,609 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $19,722,000 after purchasing an additional 4,624 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of Alcoa by 158.9% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 6,197 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $189,000 after buying an additional 3,803 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the first quarter worth $841,000.

Key Headlines Impacting Alcoa

Here are the key news stories impacting Alcoa this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong structural demand and tight supply — market narratives point to aluminum price strength from Venezuela reconstruction, green-energy demand and Chinese capacity caps, supporting long-term upside for producers like Alcoa. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Valuation/positioning case — recent write-ups argue Alcoa’s vertical integration and cleaner balance sheet let it capture higher aluminum prices, giving the rally fundamental backing and potential for further upside. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor caution pieces remind buyers not to chase short-term commodity spikes; analysts and pundits differ on whether the current rally is a durable re-rating or a momentum run. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan downgrade to underweight (citing valuation) is the primary driver of the intraday decline; the bank prefers copper exposure (e.g., Freeport) over aluminum and says Alcoa looks rich versus its medium-term view. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan reiteration/price-target action — the firm reaffirmed an underweight stance and set a $50 target (higher than prior but still below the market), which institutional and quant funds may use as a trigger to reduce exposure. Read More.

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.