Barclays Upgrades Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) to Hold

Key Points

• Barclays upgraded Century Aluminum to “Hold,” while analyst sentiment remains mixed: the consensus rating is “Hold” with an average price target of $64.60.
• CENX opened at $33.22, well below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $42.34 and $50.93, respectively; the stock has traded between $25.40 and $70.43 over the past year.
• Century Aluminum exceeded quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $2.46 versus a $2.33 estimate, while revenue rose 59% year over year to $752.1 million but fell short of estimates.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Barclays to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on CENX. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Century Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Century Aluminum from $83.00 to $79.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Century Aluminum from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Century Aluminum from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $64.60.

Century Aluminum Stock Down 2.8%

CENX opened at $33.22 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $42.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.93. Century Aluminum has a 52 week low of $25.40 and a 52 week high of $70.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 5.74 and a beta of 2.07.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $752.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $817.15 million. Century Aluminum had a return on equity of 33.83% and a net margin of 22.63%. Century Aluminum's revenue for the quarter was up 59.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Century Aluminum will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Century Aluminum during the second quarter valued at approximately $474,129,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Century Aluminum by 109.7% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,830,324 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $107,422,000 after purchasing an additional 957,571 shares during the period. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Century Aluminum by 210.4% in the 1st quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,551,362 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $91,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,051,525 shares during the period. Impala Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Century Aluminum by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Impala Asset Management LLC now owns 975,000 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $57,223,000 after buying an additional 117,195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kinetic Partners Management LP purchased a new stake in Century Aluminum during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,736,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.59% of the company's stock.

Century Aluminum Company Profile

Century Aluminum Company is a producer of primary aluminum. The company operates aluminum reduction facilities that convert alumina into aluminum metal through the electrolytic smelting process. Its products include standard-grade and value-added primary aluminum, which is supplied to manufacturers and other industrial customers.

Century Aluminum serves markets such as automotive, aerospace, construction, packaging and consumer products. Its operations have included facilities in the United States and Iceland, including smelters in Kentucky, South Carolina and at Grundartangi, Iceland.

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