VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Invests $3.85 Million in Alcoa $AA

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Alcoa (NYSE:AA) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 73,900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,853,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AA. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Alcoa in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,528,523,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Alcoa by 5,246.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 15,966,936 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $832,516,000 after buying an additional 15,668,264 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Alcoa by 211.7% during the fourth 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 period. Castle Hook Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the fourth quarter valued at $210,874,000. Finally, Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Alcoa in the fourth quarter valued at $173,412,000.

Alcoa Stock Performance

Shares of Alcoa stock opened at $50.68 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.53. Alcoa has a one year low of $30.71 and a one year high of $84.38. The company has a market cap of $13.38 billion, a PE ratio of 10.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.63.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The industrial products company reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.25 by ($0.13). Alcoa had a net margin of 9.48% and a return on equity of 18.90%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.99 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.39 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Alcoa will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alcoa Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 11th. Alcoa’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Tammi A. Jones sold 15,628 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.60, for a total value of $790,776.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 39,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,014,841.40. This represents a 28.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Renato Bacchi sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.02, for a total value of $35,714.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 74,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,822,928.60. This represents a 0.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AA shares. Zacks Research lowered Alcoa from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $53.00 target price (down from $79.00) on shares of Alcoa in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Alcoa from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Alcoa from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Alcoa from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.09.

Alcoa 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.