Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Cut to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Century Aluminum from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Century Aluminum from $46.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.00.

Century Aluminum Price Performance

Shares of CENX stock opened at $47.75 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $36.07 and its 200 day moving average is $29.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $4.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.18 and a beta of 2.26. Century Aluminum has a twelve month low of $13.05 and a twelve month high of $50.16.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $632.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $629.85 million. Century Aluminum had a net margin of 3.47% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. Research analysts expect that Century Aluminum will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Century Aluminum

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Boston Partners lifted its position in Century Aluminum by 340.1% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,733,668 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,339,744 shares during the last quarter. 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 worth $25,662,000 after buying an additional 1,224,088 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 392.3% during 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 buying an additional 611,758 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Century Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $9,399,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Century Aluminum by 123.9% in the third 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 worth $25,247,000 after acquiring an additional 475,904 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.