Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $50.16 and last traded at $48.0480, with a volume of 397284 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.87.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on CENX shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a research note on Wednesday. Zacks Research cut shares of Century Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Century Aluminum from $46.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Century Aluminum from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Century Aluminum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.00.

Century Aluminum Stock Performance

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $36.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.71. The stock has a market cap of $4.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.82 and a beta of 2.26.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.23). Century Aluminum had a net margin of 3.47% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The firm had revenue of $632.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $629.85 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Century Aluminum Company will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Century Aluminum

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CENX. Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Century Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at $641,000. New Century Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum in the third quarter worth about $987,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC boosted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 620.8% in the third quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 143,144 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,203,000 after buying an additional 123,285 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 103.1% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 407,939 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,977,000 after buying an additional 207,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Icon Advisers Inc. Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,860,000. Institutional investors own 61.59% of the company’s stock.

Century Aluminum Company Profile

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.