Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Price Target Cut to $71.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) had its price objective reduced by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $79.00 to $71.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 120.70% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on CENX. Barclays started coverage on shares of Century Aluminum in a research note on Wednesday, October 14th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. B. Riley Financial cut their price objective on shares of Century Aluminum from $72.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Century Aluminum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Century Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 20th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Century Aluminum from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Century Aluminum currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.00.

Century Aluminum Stock Performance

Century Aluminum stock traded up $2.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $32.17. 584,604 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,111,338. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.75 and a quick ratio of 1.61. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.48. Century Aluminum has a fifty-two week low of $25.40 and a fifty-two week high of $70.43. The stock has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.59 and a beta of 2.17.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $961.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $945.02 million. Century Aluminum had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 33.83%. Century Aluminum’s revenue for the quarter was up 52.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.56 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Century Aluminum will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Century Aluminum

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Century Aluminum by 20.1% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 17,147 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $617,000 after purchasing an additional 2,872 shares during the last quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its position in Century Aluminum by 84.7% during the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 15,188 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 6,967 shares in the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC increased its position in Century Aluminum by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 14,323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 2,185 shares in the last quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC bought a new position in Century Aluminum in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $8,976,000. Finally, Fulcrum Asset Management LLP bought a new position in Century Aluminum in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $198,000. 61.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Century Aluminum

Here are the key news stories impacting Century Aluminum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue rose 52% year over year to $961.2 million, topping analyst expectations, while aluminum shipments increased 33% sequentially to 173,483 tonnes. Net income attributable to Century was $302.6 million, or $2.89 per diluted share. Century Aluminum Q3 results
• Positive Sentiment: Higher shipments and nearly $1 billion in quarterly sales were highlighted as notable takeaways for long-term investors, indicating stronger volume and revenue momentum. Three takeaways for long-term investors
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted EPS was $2.58, below the $2.67 estimate cited in company coverage, despite the stronger reported GAAP EPS of $2.89. The adjusted earnings miss may have disappointed investors focused on underlying performance. Q3 results and cost pressures
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage attributed the adjusted earnings pressure to power and operating costs, which could limit how much of the sales and shipment growth flows through to profit. Adjusted EPS report

About Century Aluminum

Century Aluminum Company is a producer of primary aluminum. The company operates aluminum smelters that convert alumina into aluminum metal, supplying standard-grade and value-added products used in transportation, construction, packaging, aerospace, and other industrial applications.

Century Aluminum’s operations are located in the United States and Iceland. Its U.S. facilities include the Sebree smelter in Kentucky and the Mt. Holly smelter in South Carolina, while its Icelandic operations are based at the Grundartangi aluminum smelter.