Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $19.98, but opened at $19.31. Century Aluminum shares last traded at $19.67, with a volume of 277,577 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Century Aluminum from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $22.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Century Aluminum from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th.

Century Aluminum Trading Up 0.2%

The firm has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.03 and a beta of 2.54. The company's 50 day moving average is $16.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.25). Century Aluminum had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 13.38%. The firm had revenue of $633.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $643.80 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Century Aluminum will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new stake in Century Aluminum in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. AlphaQuest LLC increased its stake in Century Aluminum by 2,889.3% in the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 2,511 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 2,427 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Century Aluminum by 261.8% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 4,020 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 2,909 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Century Aluminum by 13.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,418 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 628 shares in the last quarter. 61.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Century Aluminum

Century Aluminum Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production of standard-grade and value-added primary aluminum products in the United States and Iceland. It also owns and operates an alumina production facility in Iceland, and a carbon anode production facility in the Netherlands.