Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Invests $6.26 Million in Century Aluminum Company $CENX

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 213,350 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,264,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CENX. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Century Aluminum by 22.1% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,001 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $724,000 after purchasing an additional 7,051 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 59,186 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,098,000 after buying an additional 1,069 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Century Aluminum by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 124,001 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,301,000 after purchasing an additional 21,702 shares during the period. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Century Aluminum during the second quarter valued at about $641,000. 61.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on CENX. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised Century Aluminum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Century Aluminum from $46.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. B. Riley Financial upped their target price on shares of Century Aluminum from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Century Aluminum from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Century Aluminum has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.33.

Century Aluminum Price Performance

NASDAQ:CENX opened at $54.45 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 136.13 and a beta of 2.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.97 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.91. Century Aluminum Company has a 1 year low of $13.05 and a 1 year high of $56.96.

Century Aluminum (NASDAQ:CENX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25. Century Aluminum had a return on equity of 5.57% and a net margin of 1.65%.The company had revenue of $633.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $661.63 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. Century Aluminum’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Century Aluminum Company will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jesse E. Gary sold 150,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.19, for a total transaction of $7,228,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 292,580 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,099,430.20. This represents a 33.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Robert F. Hoffman sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.33, for a total transaction of $563,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 67,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,783,798.76. The trade was a 12.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 241,097 shares of company stock valued at $11,932,418 in the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Century Aluminum 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.