JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reaffirms “Underweight” Rating for Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU)

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU)‘s stock had its “underweight” rating restated by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a research note issued on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. They presently have a $142.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock, up from their previous target price of $124.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective points to a potential downside of 18.26% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on KALU. Wall Street Zen raised Kaiser Aluminum from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. Zacks Research cut Kaiser Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Kaiser Aluminum from $170.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised Kaiser Aluminum from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Kaiser Aluminum from $125.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.00.

Kaiser Aluminum Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:KALU opened at $173.72 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $134.32 and a 200-day moving average of $118.62. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.92 and a beta of 1.39. Kaiser Aluminum has a twelve month low of $65.69 and a twelve month high of $181.47.

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $3.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $1.78. The business had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $948.50 million. Kaiser Aluminum had a net margin of 4.14% and a return on equity of 17.00%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kaiser Aluminum will post 7.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Iulian Gheorghe sold 175 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.22, for a total value of $30,488.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 4,448 shares in the company, valued at $774,930.56. This represents a 3.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Keith Harvey sold 47,001 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.09, for a total value of $8,229,405.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 97,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,043,085.51. This trade represents a 32.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 76,731 shares of company stock worth $13,137,697. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kaiser Aluminum

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Kaiser Aluminum in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 340.0% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 374 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Kaiser Aluminum by 389.3% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Kaiser Aluminum by 475.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 414 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 342 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in Kaiser Aluminum by 408.3% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 366 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Kaiser Aluminum

Here are the key news stories impacting Kaiser Aluminum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: several outlets and analysts have raised KALU price targets recently (including a notable lift cited on MSN), and Weiss Ratings moved the stock to a buy — these upgrades help justify the rally and reduce perceived downside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly results: Kaiser reported a large beat (Q1 EPS $3.74 vs. ~$1.96 estimate and revenue of ~$1.11B, +42% y/y), supporting the company’s near?term earnings outlook and investor interest.
• Neutral Sentiment: Small leadership sale: SVP Iulian Gheorghe sold 175 shares (~$30k), an immaterial trade that likely has little impact on fundamentals. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Director-level small sale: Director Richard P. Grimley sold 1,524 shares (~$261k); notable but not large enough alone to signal company stress. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Minor CEO sale disclosure: a filing shows Keith Harvey sold a small block (3,031 shares) at roughly current prices — an item to monitor in context of larger transactions. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sell?off: multiple senior insiders have sold sizeable stakes (reports include CEO sales of larger blocks, a director sale of 15,000 shares, and a CFO sale), which markets and media have framed as a “wave” and which can amplify short?term selling pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Headline risk from pundits and research: Jim Cramer publicly said he “can’t recommend” KALU, and JPMorgan reaffirmed an underweight with a price target below the current market price — both increase near?term narrative risk for the stock. Read More. Read More.

About Kaiser Aluminum

Kaiser Aluminum Corporation is a U.S.-based producer of semi?fabricated aluminum products, serving a diverse range of industrial and specialty markets. The company’s offerings include extruded, rolled, and forged aluminum products designed to meet stringent performance requirements in sectors such as aerospace, automotive, defense, electronics, and general engineering. By focusing on high?value applications, Kaiser Aluminum aims to deliver lightweight, durable solutions that contribute to efficiency and innovation across its customer base.

Operationally, Kaiser Aluminum maintains a network of smelters, extrusion plants, and rolling mills located primarily in North America.