Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) Raised to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on KALU. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kaiser Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $142.00 price target (up from $124.00) on shares of Kaiser Aluminum in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Kaiser Aluminum from $176.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Kaiser Aluminum from $170.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Kaiser Aluminum in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $168.25.

Kaiser Aluminum Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KALU opened at $159.72 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Kaiser Aluminum has a 1 year low of $71.44 and a 1 year high of $195.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 1.59. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $175.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $152.05.

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $5.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.66 by $2.87. The firm had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.12 billion. Kaiser Aluminum had a return on equity of 24.71% and a net margin of 5.49%.The firm’s revenue was up 52.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.21 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kaiser Aluminum will post 10.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Kaiser Aluminum

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KALU. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,117,791 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $243,249,000 after acquiring an additional 5,823 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 31.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,154,415 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $92,238,000 after purchasing an additional 279,231 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 831,652 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $95,528,000 after purchasing an additional 13,909 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Kaiser Aluminum by 1.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 502,446 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,769,000 after purchasing an additional 5,623 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Kaiser Aluminum by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 198,354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,783,000 after purchasing an additional 28,495 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.