Alcoa (NYSE:AA) Downgraded to Strong Sell Rating by Zacks Research

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

AA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. B. Riley Financial cut their price objective on shares of Alcoa from $92.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Alcoa from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings raised Alcoa from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen cut Alcoa from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Alcoa from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.91.

Alcoa Stock Performance

AA opened at $48.78 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Alcoa has a 52-week low of $28.11 and a 52-week high of $84.38. The company has a market cap of $12.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.63. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $63.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $62.78.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 12.57% and a net margin of 8.27%.The company had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.15 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Alcoa will post 8.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Alcoa

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AA. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of Alcoa by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 5,138 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Essential Partners LLC grew its position in Alcoa by 0.9% in the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 20,525 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,361,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Alcoa by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,682 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $568,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC increased its position in shares of Alcoa by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 57,940 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,079,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Alcoa by 74.1% during the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 557 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the last quarter.

Key Headlines Impacting Alcoa

Here are the key news stories impacting Alcoa this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on Alcoa to $72 from $71 and kept an overweight rating, signaling one analyst still sees meaningful upside. Alcoa had its price target raised by Wells Fargo & Company
• Neutral Sentiment: Alcoa was added to the Zacks Rank #5 “Strong Sell” list, which may reinforce bearish sentiment but is a model-based signal rather than a company-specific event. New Strong Sell Stocks for July 9th
• Neutral Sentiment: Benzinga highlighted Alcoa as one of several “oversold” materials stocks with RSI near or below 30, which could attract bargain hunters if investors look for a rebound. New Strong Sell Stocks for July 9th
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst sentiment has deteriorated as Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and Bank of America all trimmed their valuation views, citing weaker aluminum fundamentals and a less favorable supply outlook. Morgan Stanley upgrades Ivanhoe Mines, cuts Alcoa and Vale on metals outlook

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.