Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU) Receives "Neutral" Rating from Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America has maintained a "neutral" rating on Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU) with a target price increase from $210.00 to $285.00, suggesting a potential upside of 20.25% from the current price.
• The stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy", with ratings varying from one sell, six hold, seven buy, and one strong buy from different analysts.
• Centrus Energy reported earnings of $1.59 per share for the last quarter, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.58, although the company's revenue declined by 18.3% year-over-year.

Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "neutral" rating restated by equities researchers at Bank of America in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $285.00 target price on the stock, up from their prior target price of $210.00. Bank of America's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 20.25% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on LEU. UBS Group raised Centrus Energy to a "hold" rating and set a $215.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Centrus Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $220.00 target price on the stock. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Centrus Energy in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Northland Securities initiated coverage on shares of Centrus Energy in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $205.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $205.00 price objective on Centrus Energy and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $190.00.

Centrus Energy Stock Performance

Shares of LEU opened at $237.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.09, a quick ratio of 2.46 and a current ratio of 2.93. Centrus Energy has a 52-week low of $34.91 and a 52-week high of $264.90. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $187.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $118.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.74 and a beta of 1.35.

Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $1.01. Centrus Energy had a net margin of 16.56% and a return on equity of 84.09%. Centrus Energy's revenue was down 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Centrus Energy will post 2.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Centrus Energy

In related news, CFO Kevin J. Harrill sold 1,728 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.00, for a total transaction of $217,728.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP John M. A. Donelson sold 3,732 shares of Centrus Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.31, for a total value of $359,428.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Centrus Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LEU. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Centrus Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $370,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Centrus Energy by 72.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 23,768 shares of the company's stock worth $1,583,000 after acquiring an additional 10,011 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in Centrus Energy by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 38,211 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,545,000 after purchasing an additional 6,744 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Centrus Energy by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 967,393 shares of the company's stock worth $64,438,000 after purchasing an additional 71,872 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Centrus Energy by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,604 shares of the company's stock worth $507,000 after acquiring an additional 1,316 shares during the period. 49.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Centrus Energy

Centrus Energy Corp. supplies nuclear fuel components and services for the nuclear power industry in the United States, Belgium, Japan, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Low-Enriched Uranium (LEU) and Technical Solutions. The LEU segment sells separative work units (SWU) components of LEU; natural uranium hexafluoride, uranium concentrates, and uranium conversion; and enriched uranium products to utilities that operate nuclear power plants.