Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Century Aluminum from “buy” to “strong-buy.” However, other analyst views are mixed, with the stock holding a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $72 target price.
• Century Aluminum reported quarterly EPS of $2.46, exceeding the $2.33 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $752.1 million, up 59% year over year but below expectations.
• CENX shares opened at $44.05, down 0.7%, with a $4.36 billion market capitalization; institutional investors own approximately 61.6% of the company.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

CENX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Zacks Research cut Century Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Century Aluminum in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings cut Century Aluminum from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Century Aluminum has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.00.

Century Aluminum Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of CENX stock opened at $44.05 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $45.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $53.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.75 and a quick ratio of 1.61. Century Aluminum has a 1 year low of $24.58 and a 1 year high of $70.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.61 and a beta of 1.99.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Century Aluminum

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Century Aluminum by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,001 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $724,000 after acquiring an additional 7,051 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 1.8% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 59,186 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,098,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 21.2% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 124,001 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,301,000 after purchasing an additional 21,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 7.1% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 147,046 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,650,000 after purchasing an additional 9,721 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.59% of the company's stock.

About Century Aluminum

Century Aluminum Company is a producer of primary aluminum. The company operates aluminum smelters that convert alumina into aluminum metal, supplying standard-grade and value-added products used in transportation, construction, packaging, and other industrial applications.

Century Aluminum's operations are primarily located in the United States and Iceland. Its U.S. portfolio includes facilities in Sebree, Kentucky, and Mount Holly, South Carolina, while its Icelandic operations include the Grundartangi smelter, operated through its Norðurál subsidiary.

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