Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $10.30 Million Position in Century Aluminum Company $CENX

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ:CENX) by 35.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 350,858 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 91,647 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.38% of Century Aluminum worth $10,301,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boston Partners increased its holdings in Century Aluminum by 340.1% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,733,668 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,339,744 shares in the last quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC grew its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 612.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 1,424,088 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $25,662,000 after buying an additional 1,224,088 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Century Aluminum in the 2nd quarter valued at $9,399,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 13.2% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,665,546 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $66,053,000 after acquiring an additional 426,306 shares during the period. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its position in shares of Century Aluminum by 155.5% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 541,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,751,000 after acquiring an additional 329,298 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.59% of the company’s stock.

Century Aluminum Stock Performance

Shares of Century Aluminum stock opened at $49.70 on Friday. Century Aluminum Company has a 52 week low of $13.05 and a 52 week high of $55.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $42.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.24. The company has a market cap of $4.64 billion, a PE ratio of 58.47 and a beta of 2.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Century Aluminum from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Zacks Research downgraded Century Aluminum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 19th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Century Aluminum from $46.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Century Aluminum in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, B. Riley Financial raised their price objective on Century Aluminum from $37.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $53.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jesse E. Gary sold 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.19, for a total value of $7,228,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 292,580 shares in the company, valued at $14,099,430.20. This represents a 33.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.