Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Shares of Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $17.54, but opened at $18.75. Century Aluminum shares last traded at $19.72, with a volume of 231,672 shares changing hands.

The industrial products company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.31. The firm had revenue of $539.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $587.10 million. Century Aluminum had a negative return on equity of 0.04% and a net margin of 10.32%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.13) EPS.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. B. Riley cut their price objective on Century Aluminum from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Century Aluminum from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased 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.

Institutional Trading of Century Aluminum

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 13,746.2% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,787 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 104.1% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 2,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,385 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 39.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,347 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in Century Aluminum by 7,779.8% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 7,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $108,000 after buying an additional 6,924 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the first quarter valued at about $161,000. 61.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Century Aluminum Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a PE ratio of 9.43 and a beta of 2.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $15.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $16.19.

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.