Alcoa Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:AA)

Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 31,002 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 86% compared to the average daily volume of 16,681 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Alcoa from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Alcoa from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Alcoa to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th. B. Riley upgraded Alcoa from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $41.00 to $50.00 in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Alcoa from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.73.

Alcoa Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:AA traded down $0.53 during trading on Monday, reaching $37.15. The stock had a trading volume of 2,570,522 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,659,054. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $42.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Alcoa has a one year low of $24.86 and a one year high of $47.77. The company has a market capitalization of $9.60 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.11, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 2.44.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The industrial products company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. Alcoa had a negative net margin of 2.65% and a negative return on equity of 1.45%. Alcoa's revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($1.14) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Alcoa will post 0.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 29th. Alcoa's dividend payout ratio is presently -22.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Renato Bacchi sold 23,867 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.29, for a total transaction of $1,009,335.43. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,423,935.93. This trade represents a 29.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alcoa

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Alcoa during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Alcoa by 481.7% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 762 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Alcoa during the third quarter worth about $43,000. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in Alcoa by 1,945.5% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,125 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 1,070 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in Alcoa in the third quarter valued at approximately $89,000. 82.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.