Century Aluminum Company $CENX Position Lessened by Glencore plc

Key Points

• Glencore cut its stake in Century Aluminum by 10.1% to 36,005,947 shares but still owns about 38.58% of the company, making CENX roughly 32.6% of Glencore’s portfolio and its second-largest holding.
• Other institutions (notably Vanguard, Sourcerock, American Century and UBS) boosted positions—institutions own about 61.6% of CENX—while insiders have sold ~251,626 shares (~$13.6M) over the past 90 days.
• CENX trades near $59 with a market cap of $5.84B and a high P/E (~147); analysts have a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating and an average price target of about $79.33.

Glencore plc cut its stake in Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX - Free Report) by 10.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,005,947 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 4,051,409 shares during the quarter. Century Aluminum comprises about 32.6% of Glencore plc's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Glencore plc owned approximately 38.58% of Century Aluminum worth $1,410,713,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CENX. Sourcerock Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 612.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 1,424,088 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $25,662,000 after acquiring an additional 1,224,088 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,939,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $271,901,000 after acquiring an additional 1,094,257 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 392.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 767,692 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $22,539,000 after acquiring an additional 611,758 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of Century Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at $9,399,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 123.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 859,900 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $25,247,000 after acquiring an additional 475,904 shares during the period. 61.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Century Aluminum Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of CENX stock opened at $58.98 on Friday. Century Aluminum Company has a 1-year low of $14.77 and a 1-year high of $68.69. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $57.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.97 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $5.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 147.45 and a beta of 1.91.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.25. The business had revenue of $633.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $661.63 million. Century Aluminum had a return on equity of 5.57% and a net margin of 1.65%.The company's quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Century Aluminum Company will post 10.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Century Aluminum from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Century Aluminum from $69.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. B. Riley Financial boosted their target price on Century Aluminum from $68.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Zacks Research downgraded Century Aluminum from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Century Aluminum from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Century Aluminum presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $79.33.

Insider Transactions at Century Aluminum

In other Century Aluminum news, SVP Matt Aboud sold 2,971 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.67, for a total transaction of $156,482.57. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 64,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,415,280.81. The trade was a 4.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Robert F. Hoffman sold 10,529 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.51, for a total value of $594,993.79. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 56,643 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,200,895.93. The trade was a 15.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 251,626 shares of company stock worth $13,619,411 in the last 90 days. 0.76% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Century Aluminum 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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