Investors Purchase Large Volume of Alcoa Call Options (NYSE:AA)

Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Traders acquired 27,556 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 53% compared to the average daily volume of 18,056 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alcoa

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AA. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in Alcoa by 77.1% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 680 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Alcoa during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alcoa by 59.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Alcoa during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. 82.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AA. B. Riley raised shares of Alcoa to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Alcoa to $43.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group cut their price target on Alcoa from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Alcoa from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Alcoa to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.92.

Alcoa Trading Down 4.4 %

Shares of NYSE:AA opened at $30.58 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -191.15, a PEG ratio of 0.19 and a beta of 2.55. Alcoa has a 52-week low of $27.12 and a 52-week high of $47.77. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $34.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.13. Alcoa had a return on equity of 5.54% and a net margin of 0.50%. Equities analysts predict that Alcoa will post 4.43 EPS for the current year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. Alcoa’s dividend payout ratio is currently -250.00%.

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.