BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. Grows Stake in Century Aluminum Company $CENX

Key Points

• BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. boosted its Century Aluminum stake by 83.7% in the fourth quarter, ending with 183,669 shares valued at about $7.2 million.
• Several other institutional investors also increased holdings, and 61.59% of Century Aluminum is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Analysts remain upbeat on the stock: Century Aluminum has a Buy consensus rating with an average target price of $80, while the shares recently traded at $63.91 and are near their 12-month high of $68.80.

BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. raised its stake in Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX - Free Report) by 83.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 183,669 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 83,669 shares during the quarter. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. owned about 0.20% of Century Aluminum worth $7,196,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 22.1% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,001 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $724,000 after acquiring an additional 7,051 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 1.8% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 59,186 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,098,000 after acquiring an additional 1,069 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Century Aluminum by 21.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 124,001 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,301,000 after purchasing an additional 21,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Century Aluminum by 7.1% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 147,046 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,650,000 after purchasing an additional 9,721 shares in the last quarter. 61.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Century Aluminum Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CENX opened at $63.91 on Tuesday. Century Aluminum Company has a 12 month low of $16.59 and a 12 month high of $68.80. The stock has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.08 and a beta of 1.90. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $60.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.30 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Insider Activity at Century Aluminum

In other Century Aluminum news, CEO Jesse E. Gary sold 150,000 shares of Century Aluminum stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.47, for a total transaction of $8,320,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 142,580 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,908,912.60. The trade was a 51.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Robert F. Hoffman sold 10,529 shares of Century Aluminum stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.51, for a total transaction of $594,993.79. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 56,643 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,200,895.93. This trade represents a 15.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 170,529 shares of company stock worth $9,478,794. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on CENX shares. Zacks Research upgraded Century Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Century Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets set a $75.00 target price on shares of Century Aluminum and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Century Aluminum from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.00.

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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