Alcoa Earnings Expectations (NYSE:AA)

One of the big name companies expected to report good news early in the New Year is Alcoa Inc. (NYSE:AA).  On January 11, the company will report earnings after the market closes, and the hope is that earnings will at least be inline with expectations so the stock can continue its strong uptrend posted over the past 9 months.

According to analysts, Alcoa is projected to post a December 2009 gain of 6 cents a share, which is down two cents from 30 days ago. In the year-ago quarter, Alcoa dropped a nasty gram to investors as they posted -$0.28 per share on $4.7B in revenue versus the expected -$0.05 EPS for that quarter. 

On New Year’s Eve, traders managed to push shares of Alcoa lower by $0.18 (-1.1%) to $16.12 a share.  This is not too unexpected as the stock saw a nice run the past two weeks of trading.  The chart indicates Alcoa is in an uptrend and trading nicely between the trading range currently established between about $14 and $16.50.  If the upcoming earnings disappoints in any way, that could drive share price down below $16 and could be an attractive buying opportunity for investors.  If earnings meet expectation or surprise, then we would anticipate the rally on Alcoa’s shares to continue and the trend to follow along in the price channel established for the stock.

Alcoa Inc. engages in the production and management of primary aluminum, fabricated aluminum, and alumina worldwide. It involves in the technology, mining, refining, smelting, fabricating, and recycling of aluminum.