Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong-Buy” Rating

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

CENX has been the topic of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets set a $75.00 price target on Century Aluminum and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings raised Century Aluminum from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised Century Aluminum from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. B. Riley Financial increased 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Century Aluminum presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $79.33.

Century Aluminum Stock Performance

Shares of Century Aluminum stock opened at $62.62 on Tuesday. Century Aluminum has a 52 week low of $14.77 and a 52 week high of $68.69. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $57.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.09. The firm has a market cap of $6.20 billion, a PE ratio of 156.55 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.25. Century Aluminum had a return on equity of 5.57% and a net margin of 1.65%.The business had revenue of $633.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $661.63 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Century Aluminum will post 10.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Century Aluminum news, EVP John Dezee sold 66,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.72, for a total transaction of $3,347,520.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 97,647 shares in the company, valued at $4,952,655.84. This represents a 40.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Matt Aboud sold 2,971 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.67, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 4.38% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 251,626 shares of company stock worth $13,619,411 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Century Aluminum

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in Century Aluminum in the first quarter valued at $42,000. Private Trust Co. NA acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the 1st quarter worth about $47,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the 1st quarter worth about $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.59% of the company’s stock.

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.