Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Trading Down 6.9% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Century Aluminum shares fell 6.9% to about $48.66 in mid-day trading, with volume roughly 36% below the average.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but leans positive: the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with a $72 price target, despite Zacks downgrading the stock to “strong sell” and B. Riley cutting its target to $74.
• The company beat quarterly EPS estimates ($2.46 versus $2.33) and revenue grew 59% year over year, though revenue of $752.1 million fell short of the $817.2 million analyst forecast.

Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 6.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $48.65 and last traded at $48.66. Approximately 1,396,611 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 36% from the average daily volume of 2,178,126 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.29.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CENX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Century Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Century Aluminum from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. B. Riley Financial cut their price target on shares of Century Aluminum from $86.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Century Aluminum in a research report on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Century Aluminum from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Century Aluminum Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.99. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $4.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.56 and a beta of 1.96.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.33 by $0.13. The company 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%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 59.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Century Aluminum Company will post 8.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Century Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $474,129,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 18.7% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 1.8% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 109.7% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,830,324 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $107,422,000 after purchasing an additional 957,571 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,609,093 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $63,044,000 after purchasing an additional 176,730 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.59% of the company's stock.

Century Aluminum Company Profile

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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