Century Aluminum Company (CENX) Upgraded at Zacks Investment Research

Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Tuesday, July 18th. The brokerage currently has $20.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock.

According to Zacks, “Estimates for Century Aluminum have been going up of late. The company has outperformed the Zacks categorized Metal Procurement & Fabrication industry over a year. Century Aluminum is implementing a number of actions to reduce costs and preserve cash amid a weak operating environment. It should also gain from strong aluminum demand across automotive and aerospace markets in its key regions, North America and China, as well as acquisitions. Moreover, the company has low debt and short-term obligations which will help it remain strong in an adverse environment.”

A number of other brokerages have also commented on CENX. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a hold rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Century Aluminum in a research note on Sunday, July 2nd. Deutsche Bank AG upgraded shares of Century Aluminum from a sell rating to a hold rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Friday, June 23rd. BidaskClub lowered shares of Century Aluminum from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Saturday, June 17th. Finally, Cowen and Company lifted their price target on shares of Century Aluminum from $11.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Thursday, April 27th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $14.40.

Century Aluminum (CENX) traded down 0.18% on Tuesday, reaching $16.77. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 716,454 shares. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $16.26 and its 200-day moving average is $14.27. The firm’s market cap is $1.46 billion. Century Aluminum has a 12 month low of $5.53 and a 12 month high of $19.08.

In other news, insider Michael A. Bless sold 27,618 shares of Century Aluminum stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.88, for a total transaction of $410,955.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 4.9% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 115,453 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,799,000 after buying an additional 5,380 shares in the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund boosted its position in Century Aluminum by 0.9% in the second quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund now owns 36,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $566,000 after buying an additional 307 shares during the period. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can boosted its position in Century Aluminum by 18.8% in the second quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 77,580 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,208,000 after buying an additional 12,258 shares during the period. Municipal Employees Retirement System of Michigan boosted its position in Century Aluminum by 3.3% in the second quarter. Municipal Employees Retirement System of Michigan now owns 11,730 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $183,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the period. Finally, Parametrica Management Ltd purchased a new position in Century Aluminum during the second quarter worth $516,000. Institutional investors own 65.06% of the company’s stock.

Century Aluminum Company Profile

Century Aluminum Company (Century) is a holding company, which is a producer of primary aluminum and operates aluminum reduction facilities, or smelters, in the United States and Iceland. The Company operates through primary aluminum segment. The Company’s primary aluminum facilities produce standard grade primary aluminum products.

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