Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Upgraded at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Alcoa (NYSE:AA) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Morgan Stanley currently has $80.00 price target on the industrial products company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $64.00.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on AA. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Alcoa from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Alcoa in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Alcoa from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Alcoa from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $50.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Alcoa from $54.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.73.

Alcoa Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE AA opened at $73.02 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.44. The company has a market capitalization of $19.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.52 and a beta of 1.70. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $51.52. Alcoa has a one year low of $22.68 and a one year high of $75.70.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $6.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. Alcoa had a net margin of 9.12% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.04 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Alcoa will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Alcoa’s payout ratio is presently 9.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AA. Mirabella Financial Services LLP grew its position in shares of Alcoa by 12,233.1% in the 3rd quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP now owns 40,082,462 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,318,312,000 after buying an additional 39,757,462 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Alcoa by 211.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,254,017 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $332,338,000 after buying an additional 4,247,559 shares during the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Alcoa in the 4th quarter worth approximately $210,874,000. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alcoa in the 4th quarter worth approximately $173,412,000. Finally, L1 Capital Pty Ltd grew its position in shares of Alcoa by 178.8% in the 2nd quarter. L1 Capital Pty Ltd now owns 4,814,342 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $142,071,000 after buying an additional 3,087,298 shares during the last quarter.

Alcoa News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Alcoa this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley upgraded AA from “equal weight” to “overweight” and raised its price target to $80 (from $64), signaling stronger buy-side conviction and giving the stock meaningful upside potential. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: B. Riley initiated/issued a “buy” view and highlighted upside potential, adding another bullish institutional voice that can attract inflows. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised its price target to $75 (market perform), a modestly bullish signal that implies upside from recent levels. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell sharply in March (down ~19.5% to ~6.94M shares, short interest ratio ~1.1 days, ~2.6% of float). Fewer outstanding shorts reduces immediate downside pressure and can amplify rallies if positive catalysts emerge.
• Neutral Sentiment: Alcoa sits inside a broader aluminum-sector rally (geopolitical supply concerns such as the Iran situation cited) and is approaching earnings — a mixed catalyst that can swing either way depending on results and guidance. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Billionaire Stan Druckenmiller’s Duquesne Capital has shown intermittent exposure to AA, a signal that may attract attention but is not a direct catalyst. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its target to $70 but kept a “neutral” rating; that target implies downside vs. current levels, introducing a conservative view from a large house and a potential cap on near-term upside. 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.