Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Centrus Energy Corp. (NYSE:LEU)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $170.31, but opened at $181.51. Centrus Energy shares last traded at $187.1110, with a volume of 244,856 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. B. Riley Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Centrus Energy from $315.00 to $295.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Centrus Energy from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Centrus Energy from $224.00 to $218.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Centrus Energy from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Centrus Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $265.91.

Centrus Energy Trading Up 8.9%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $188.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $223.65. The firm has a market cap of $3.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.35, a PEG ratio of 20.22 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 5.72, a quick ratio of 4.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.72. Centrus Energy had a net margin of 13.40% and a return on equity of 13.10%. The firm had revenue of $76.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $76.13 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Centrus Energy Corp. will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Centrus Energy

In related news, CFO Todd M. Tinelli sold 306 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.55, for a total value of $62,286.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centrus Energy

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Centrus Energy by 126.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 371,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,265,000 after purchasing an additional 207,316 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Centrus Energy by 78.8% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 442,261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,132,000 after purchasing an additional 194,909 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Centrus Energy by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 780,986 shares of the company’s stock valued at $242,161,000 after purchasing an additional 160,482 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Centrus Energy by 43.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 473,145 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,861,000 after buying an additional 143,069 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in Centrus Energy by 217.4% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 160,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,868,000 after buying an additional 109,960 shares during the period. 49.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Centrus Energy Company Profile

Centrus Energy Corp is a U.S.-based supplier of nuclear fuel and enrichment services, specializing in the production of low-enriched uranium (LEU) for commercial power reactors and highly enriched uranium for naval propulsion. Through its Centrus Global subsidiary, the company provides technical support, fuel fabrication services and recycled uranium products to utilities operating light-water reactors. Centrus also develops advanced centrifuge technologies aimed at improving enrichment efficiency and reducing the cost of nuclear fuel.

Originally founded as the United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC) in 1998 following a spin-out from the U.S.