Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus on Century Aluminum, with four buys, one hold, and one sell among six analysts. The average 12-month price target is $72, compared with the stock’s reported $40.75 price.
• Institutional ownership stands at 61.59%, with major investors including BlackRock, Encompass Capital Advisors, and Assenagon Asset Management increasing or initiating positions.
• Century Aluminum’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations on earnings, reporting $2.46 EPS versus a $2.33 estimate, while revenue rose 59% year over year to $752.1 million but fell short of analyst forecasts.

Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $72.00.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CENX. B. Riley Financial reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Century Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Century Aluminum from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Century Aluminum from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 12th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Century Aluminum in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CENX. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Century Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $474,129,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Century Aluminum by 210.4% during the 1st quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,551,362 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $91,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,051,525 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Kinetic Partners Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum in the second quarter worth approximately $35,736,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum in the second quarter worth approximately $27,709,000. 61.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Century Aluminum Trading Up 2.4%

NASDAQ CENX opened at $40.75 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.04 and a beta of 1.99. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.08. 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 one year low of $25.40 and a one year high of $70.43.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.13. The firm 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%.Century Aluminum's revenue for the quarter was up 59.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Century Aluminum will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

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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