BMO Capital Markets Issues Positive Forecast for Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Stock Price

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at BMO Capital Markets from $30.00 to $34.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 17.32% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Century Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Century Aluminum from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. B. Riley raised their target price on Century Aluminum from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Century Aluminum from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $30.75.

Century Aluminum Stock Performance

Shares of CENX stock opened at $28.98 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.98 and a beta of 2.51. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.16. Century Aluminum has a one year low of $13.05 and a one year high of $34.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 1.75.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.32). The firm had revenue of $632.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $629.85 million. Century Aluminum had a return on equity of 18.02% and a net margin of 4.94%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Century Aluminum will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Matt Aboud sold 12,027 shares of Century Aluminum stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.27, for a total value of $279,868.29. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 62,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,456,446.03. The trade was a 16.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Agust F. Hafberg sold 9,493 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.91, for a total value of $264,949.63. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 55,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,542,306.60. This trade represents a 14.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Century Aluminum

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in Century Aluminum by 130.4% in the 1st quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 33,414 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $620,000 after purchasing an additional 18,909 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Century Aluminum by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 326,795 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,065,000 after buying an additional 7,093 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in Century Aluminum by 21.3% during the 1st quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 359,867 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,679,000 after acquiring an additional 63,086 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Century Aluminum during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,146,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new position in Century Aluminum in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,361,000. Institutional investors own 61.59% of the company’s stock.

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.