Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Shares Up 4.4% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Century Aluminum shares rose 4.4% to about $45.85, although trading volume was roughly 87% below the average daily level.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $72.00; recent targets include $79 from Wells Fargo and $60 from UBS.
• The company beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $2.46 versus $2.33 forecast, while revenue increased 59% year over year to $752.1 million but fell short of estimates. Institutional investors own 61.59% of the stock.

Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) shares were up 4.4% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $46.44 and last traded at $45.8450. Approximately 294,831 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 2,188,354 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.92.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CENX shares. Weiss Ratings cut Century Aluminum from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Century Aluminum from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. B. Riley Financial restated a "buy" rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Century Aluminum in a report on Monday, August 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Century Aluminum from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $72.00.

Century Aluminum Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.75, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.44 billion, a PE ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 1.96. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $46.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.88.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.33 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $752.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Century Aluminum Company will post 8.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Century Aluminum

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CENX. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Century Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at $474,129,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Century Aluminum by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,939,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $271,901,000 after purchasing an additional 1,094,257 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Century Aluminum by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,295,711 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $168,306,000 after purchasing an additional 77,895 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Century Aluminum by 5,428.0% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 3,534,810 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $162,637,000 after purchasing an additional 3,470,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Century Aluminum by 109.7% during 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 last quarter. 61.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Century Aluminum

Century Aluminum Company is a primary aluminum producer that develops and operates smelters designed to supply low-carbon, high-purity aluminum products to a range of industrial and commercial markets. Established in 1995, the company has grown to become a significant North American aluminum producer with an expanding international footprint. Century Aluminum is headquartered in the United States and is focused on energy-efficient operations and cost management.

The company's core operations include three primary aluminum smelting facilities located in Hawesville, Kentucky; Mount Holly, South Carolina; and Grundartangi, Iceland.

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