Investors should buy shares of Alcoa as aluminum prices continue to climb, according to Wells Fargo. Analyst Timna Tanners upgraded the aluminum miner and smelter to overweight from equal weight. Her price target of $70, up from $67, implies upside of 10.7% from Wednesday’s close. Alcoa shares have outperformed in 2026, soaring 19%. That’s well above the S & P 500’s 7.6% advance in that time. However, Tanners thinks the strength in the aluminum market is being “underappreciated” by investors. AA YTD mountain AA in 2026 “Our upgrade reflects conviction of sticky aluminum price strength that can exceed our forecasts. We also see catalysts from monetizing idled assets for data center conversion, as mgmt has noted several deals in the works, plus capital deployment news from strong profits,” she wrote to clients. Aluminum futures are up more than 15.5% year to date and have soared more than 50% over the past 12 months. Gains have been exacerbated by the U.S.-Iran war putting upward pressure on prices and demand. “Our Overweight rating reflects a view aluminum price strength can persist well into 2027E on limited global capacity additions and low global inventories,” Tanners said. The analyst added that a potential divestiture of Alcoa’s Massena East site may give shares a boost as well. Analysts are somewhat split on the stock. LSEG data shows that eight analysts covering Alcoa rate it as a buy or strong buy. However, the remaining seven assigned hold or underperform ratings on shares.
