Short Interest in Kaiser Aluminum Co. (NASDAQ:KALU) Expands By 5.7%

Kaiser Aluminum Co. (NASDAQ:KALU) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 474,700 shares, an increase of 5.7% from the October 15th total of 449,100 shares. Approximately 3.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 141,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Kaiser Aluminum Trading Down 0.9 %

NASDAQ:KALU opened at $80.63 on Monday. Kaiser Aluminum has a 1 year low of $57.52 and a 1 year high of $102.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 2.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $73.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $81.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.90 and a beta of 1.32.

Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ:KALU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.16). Kaiser Aluminum had a net margin of 1.59% and a return on equity of 6.92%. The company had revenue of $748.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $793.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kaiser Aluminum will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kaiser Aluminum Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th were issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. Kaiser Aluminum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 106.57%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kaiser Aluminum

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,894,114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $169,258,000 after buying an additional 6,363 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Kaiser Aluminum by 2.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 960,742 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $69,673,000 after acquiring an additional 20,979 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 1.1% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 826,985 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $72,692,000 after purchasing an additional 8,830 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 2.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 760,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $66,846,000 after purchasing an additional 16,148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Kaiser Aluminum by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 376,745 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,326,000 after purchasing an additional 4,388 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kaiser Aluminum

Kaiser Aluminum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in manufacture and sale of semi-fabricated specialty aluminum mill products in the United States and internationally. It offers rolled, extruded, and drawn aluminum products used for aerospace and defense, aluminum beverage and food packaging, automotive and general engineering products.