Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Century Aluminum from $46.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Century Aluminum currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.00.

Century Aluminum Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CENX opened at $47.87 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.32 and a beta of 2.26. Century Aluminum has a 1 year low of $13.05 and a 1 year high of $49.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.99.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $632.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $629.85 million. Century Aluminum had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 3.47%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Century Aluminum will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Century Aluminum

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Century Aluminum by 26.3% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,592 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 2.5% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 16,562 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC lifted its position in Century Aluminum by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 53,943 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,584,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Century Aluminum by 12.9% during the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,414 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Century Aluminum by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 20,926 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. 61.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.