Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Increases Stock Holdings in Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Alcoa Co. (NYSE:AA - Free Report) by 44.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 431,399 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 132,840 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.24% of Alcoa worth $16,643,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Alcoa during the 1st quarter valued at $593,000. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC increased its position in Alcoa by 2.0% during the third quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 1,421,955 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $54,859,000 after acquiring an additional 27,217 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Alcoa in the second quarter valued at about $706,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Alcoa by 536.7% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,878 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 2,426 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Alcoa during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,064,000. Institutional investors own 82.39% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Alcoa news, EVP Renato Bacchi sold 23,867 shares of Alcoa stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.29, for a total value of $1,009,335.43. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,423,935.93. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company's stock.

Alcoa Price Performance

AA traded down $0.92 on Friday, hitting $41.10. 3,768,912 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,935,160. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $35.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Alcoa Co. has a one year low of $23.17 and a one year high of $45.48. The firm has a market cap of $7.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.93 and a beta of 2.42.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The industrial products company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.34. Alcoa had a negative net margin of 5.14% and a negative return on equity of 7.29%. The firm had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($1.14) earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Alcoa Co. will post 0.29 EPS for the current year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 29th. Alcoa's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -10.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AA shares. B. Riley Financial reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $41.00 price objective on shares of Alcoa in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Argus upgraded shares of Alcoa from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $48.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America raised shares of Alcoa from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $43.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on Alcoa from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Alcoa from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $36.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.75.

Alcoa 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.