Kaiser Aluminum Corporation (KALU) – What Are Analysts Thinking About This Stock?

Shares of Kaiser Aluminum Corporation (NASDAQ:KALU) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $141.00.

Several brokerages have recently commented on KALU. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Kaiser Aluminum from $180.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Zacks Research cut Kaiser Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Kaiser Aluminum from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. KeyCorp reduced their price target on Kaiser Aluminum from $181.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 26th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Kaiser Aluminum from $184.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th.

Kaiser Aluminum Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of Kaiser Aluminum stock opened at $113.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 2.63. Kaiser Aluminum has a 52-week low of $88.00 and a 52-week high of $199.89. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $141.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $152.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.77 and a beta of 1.72.

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The industrial products company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.37 by ($0.48). The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.21 billion. Kaiser Aluminum had a net margin of 4.85% and a return on equity of 23.65%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 43.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.86 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Kaiser Aluminum will post 12.60 EPS for the current year.

Kaiser Aluminum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 23rd will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 23rd. Kaiser Aluminum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kaiser Aluminum

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Kaiser Aluminum in the second quarter valued at $38,353,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in Kaiser Aluminum by 37.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 149,985 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $21,722,000 after purchasing an additional 40,522 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 171,369 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $20,652,000 after purchasing an additional 1,508 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc purchased a new stake in shares of Kaiser Aluminum in the 3rd quarter worth about $12,240,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 32.4% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 101,510 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $12,233,000 after purchasing an additional 24,853 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Kaiser Aluminum Company Profile

Kaiser Aluminum is a producer of semi-fabricated aluminum products, including plate, sheet, coil and extrusions. The company focuses on products that require specialized alloys and manufacturing capabilities. Its products serve customers in markets such as aerospace, automotive, packaging, general engineering, building and construction, and consumer goods. Kaiser Aluminum operates manufacturing facilities in North America and serves customers across a range of industries and geographies. The company traces its origins to aluminum operations established by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser during World War II and was founded in 1946.