Century Aluminum Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:CENX)
by Teresa Graham · The Cerbat GemCentury Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX – Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors purchased 14,415 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 679% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,850 call options.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on CENX shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research downgraded Century Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Century Aluminum from $69.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Century Aluminum from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on Century Aluminum from $68.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Century Aluminum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.33.
Century Aluminum Stock Down 6.3%
Shares of CENX stock traded down $4.15 on Friday, reaching $61.46. 1,441,437 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,390,464. Century Aluminum has a 12-month low of $14.77 and a 12-month high of $68.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.97. The company has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 154.05 and a beta of 1.99. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $55.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.35.
Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $661.63 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. Century Aluminum’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Century Aluminum will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, EVP John Dezee sold 66,000 shares of Century Aluminum stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.72, for a total value of $3,347,520.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 97,647 shares in the company, valued at $4,952,655.84. The trade was a 40.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Robert F. Hoffman sold 10,529 shares of Century Aluminum stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.51, for a total value of $594,993.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 56,643 shares in the company, valued at $3,200,895.93. The trade was a 15.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 401,626 shares of company stock valued at $20,847,911. Insiders own 0.76% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of Century Aluminum
A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Convergence Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum in the third quarter worth about $942,000. New Century Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Century Aluminum during the 3rd quarter worth about $987,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC lifted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 620.8% during the 3rd quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 143,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,203,000 after purchasing an additional 123,285 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Century Aluminum during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,277,000. Finally, Glencore plc lifted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 33.6% during the 4th quarter. Glencore plc now owns 53,511,894 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,096,596,000 after purchasing an additional 13,454,538 shares during the last quarter. 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.