Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Trading 7.5% Higher – Still a Buy?

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX)’s share price was up 7.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $16.56 and last traded at $16.38. Approximately 535,535 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 1,352,124 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.24.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CENX. StockNews.com cut Century Aluminum from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Century Aluminum from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, B. Riley reduced their target price on shares of Century Aluminum from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th.

Century Aluminum Stock Up 4.3 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market capitalization of $1.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.36 and a beta of 2.48. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $14.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.05.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The industrial products company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.05). Century Aluminum had a net margin of 10.32% and a negative return on equity of 0.04%. The business had revenue of $560.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $530.90 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Century Aluminum will post 0.07 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Century Aluminum by 13,746.2% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 1,787 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Century Aluminum by 104.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 2,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,385 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Century Aluminum by 199.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,878 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,918 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Century Aluminum by 7,779.8% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 7,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 6,924 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Century Aluminum in the first quarter valued at approximately $161,000. 61.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Century Aluminum Company Profile

Century Aluminum Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production of standard-grade and value-added primary aluminum products in the United States and Iceland. It also owns and operates an alumina production facility in Iceland, and a carbon anode production facility in the Netherlands.