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Century Aluminum Company (CENX) Stock Analysis

SellVALUE-TRAP 2/5Moderate Confidence

Basic Materials · Aluminum

Sell if holding. Momentum 3.1/10 is below the 5.0 floor at $54.60 — engine's falling-knife protection flags exit rather than catching a breakdown. Specifics: Commodity cycle peak: fwd P/E 5.4× (below 12) + fwd/trail 0.32× (below 0.55). EPS just expanded off a commodity-price surge — forward estimate may be built on stale spot, mean-reversion risk unpriced.; Concentration risk — Customer: Glencore (54% of consolidated sales) (54.0%).

Century Aluminum is a global primary aluminum producer with active smelters in Kentucky, South Carolina, and Iceland totaling ~770,000 tpy capacity, plus a 55% JV interest in Jamalco alumina refinery in Jamaica. Revenue is LME-linked commodity pricing; Glencore accounted for 54%... Read more

$54.60+23.8% A.UpsideScore 4.9/10#4 of 4 Aluminum
QualityF-score7 / 9FCF yield-1.53%
Stop $52.87Target $68.00(analyst − 15%)A.R:R 1.8:1
Analyst target$80.00+46.5%3 analysts
$68.00our TP
$54.60price
$80.00mean
$86

Sell if holding. Momentum 3.1/10 is below the 5.0 floor at $54.60 — engine's falling-knife protection flags exit rather than catching a breakdown. Specifics: Commodity cycle peak: fwd P/E 5.4× (below 12) + fwd/trail 0.32× (below 0.55). EPS just expanded off a commodity-price surge — forward estimate may be built on stale spot, mean-reversion risk unpriced.; Concentration risk — Customer: Glencore (54% of consolidated sales) (54.0%). Chart setup: No recognized chart pattern (not a breakout, bounce, continuation, recovery, falling knife, or range) — technicals mixed. Score 4.9/10, moderate confidence.

Passes 6/8 gates (favorable risk/reward ratio, clean insider activity, no SEC red flags, news events none recent, earnings proximity 80d clear, semi cycle peak clear). Fails on weak momentum and materials cycle peak fwd=5.4x,ratio=0.32x. Suitability: aggressive.

Recent Developments — Century Aluminum Company

Generated 2026-05-20T21:06:21Z.

Thesis

Rewards
Attractive valuation
Analyst upside: 24%
Risks
Commodity cycle peak: fwd P/E 5.4× (below 12) + fwd/trail 0.32× (below 0.55). EPS just expanded off a commodity-price surge — forward estimate may be built on stale spot, mean-reversion risk unpriced.
Concentration risk — Customer: Glencore (54% of consolidated sales) (54.0%)
Concentration risk — Commodity: primary aluminum (single commodity)

Key Metrics

P/E (TTM)16.9
P/E (Fwd)5.4
Mkt Cap$5.6B
EV/EBITDA20.8
Profit Mgn13.7%
ROE32.3%
Rev Growth2.4%
Beta1.92
DividendNone
Rating analysts11

Quality Signals

Piotroski F7/9MoatNarrow

Concentration Risks(10-K Item 1A)

  • HIGHCustomerGlencore (54% of consolidated sales)54%
    10-K Item 1A: 'we derived approximately 54.0% of our consolidated net sales from Glencore and we currently have agreements in place to sell a substantial portion of our 2026 production to Glencore'
  • HIGHCommodityprimary aluminum (single commodity)
    10-K Item 1A: 'Our operating results depend on the market for primary aluminum which can be volatile and subject to many factors beyond our control'

Material Events(8-K, last 90d)

  • 2026-03-03Item 4.02HIGH
    Century Aluminum disclosed non-reliance on previously issued financial statements due to a change in accounting for Jamalco JV assets from proportionate consolidation to full consolidation (with noncontrolling interest). Restatement reflected in Q4 2025 earnings release; full 10-K to reflect corrected accounting.
    SEC filing →

Model-generated analysis — not investment advice. Not a registered investment advisor. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Full disclaimer

Rating Breakdown

4 floor-breakers

No near-term catalyst priced in. Thesis progression will come from fundamentals grinding, not event reaction.static

Earnings History
0.0
Surprise Avg
0.0
Erm
5.0
Earnings Timing
5.0
Earnings concerns: 0B/4M

Growth below the gate floor. Component breakdown shows what dragged the score down.static

Revenue Growth
3.1
Low model confidence on this dimension (33%).

Momentum below the gate floor. Component breakdown shows what dragged the score down.static

Macd
0.0
Obv
1.0
Ma Position
4.0
Volume
5.1
Rsi
5.5
Volume distribution (falling OBV)Above 200-day MA

Ranks in the bottom of its industry peers on the composite signal. Better names in the same sector exist.static

Value Rank
1.3
Growth Rank
2.5
Quality Rank
6.3
GatesMomentum 3.1<4.5MATERIALS CYCLE PEAK fwd=5.4x,ratio=0.32xA.R:R 1.8 ≥ 1.5Insider activity: OKNo SEC red flagsNEWS EVENTS NONE RECENTEARNINGS PROXIMITY 80d clearSEMI CYCLE PEAK CLEARSuitability: Aggressive
RSI
41 · Neutral
20D MA 50D MA 200D MAGOLDEN CROSSSupport $54.51Resistance $65.34

Price Targets

$53
$68
A.Upside+24.5%
A.R:R1.8:1

Position Sizing

ConvictionNone
Suggested %0.5%
Max %1%
RegimeRisk-Off

Risk Alerts

! Momentum score 3.1/10 — below 4.5 minimum
! MATERIALS_CYCLE_PEAK:fwd=5.4x,ratio=0.32x

Earnings

M
M
M
M
0/4 beats
Next Earnings2026-08-06 (80d)

Verdict History

reverse chrono — latest first
Loading history...
Verdicts are recorded on every nightly pipeline run. Rows capture transitions (verdict flips, score deltas ≥0.3, entry/TP/SL changes). Rows with a ▶ can be expanded to see the change reason. Aggregate cohort performance is tracked in the recommendation ledger.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CENX stock a buy right now?

Sell if holding. Momentum 3.1/10 is below the 5.0 floor at $54.60 — engine's falling-knife protection flags exit rather than catching a breakdown. Specifics: Commodity cycle peak: fwd P/E 5.4× (below 12) + fwd/trail 0.32× (below 0.55). EPS just expanded off a commodity-price surge — forward estimate may be built on stale spot, mean-reversion risk unpriced.; Concentration risk — Customer: Glencore (54% of consolidated sales) (54.0%). Chart setup: No recognized chart pattern (not a breakout, bounce, continuation, recovery, falling knife, or range) — technicals mixed. Prior stop was $52.87. Score 4.9/10, moderate confidence.

What is the CENX stock price target?

Take-profit target: $68.00 (+23.8% upside). Prior stop was $52.87. Stop-loss: $52.87.

What are the risks of investing in CENX?

Commodity cycle peak: fwd P/E 5.4× (below 12) + fwd/trail 0.32× (below 0.55). EPS just expanded off a commodity-price surge — forward estimate may be built on stale spot, mean-reversion risk unpriced.; Concentration risk — Customer: Glencore (54% of consolidated sales) (54.0%); Concentration risk — Commodity: primary aluminum (single commodity).

Is CENX overvalued or undervalued?

Century Aluminum Company trades at a P/E of 16.9 (forward 5.4). TrendMatrix value score: 7.6/10. Verdict: Sell.

What do analysts say about CENX?

11 analysts cover CENX with a consensus score of 4.1/5. Average price target: $80.

What does Century Aluminum Company do?Century Aluminum is a global primary aluminum producer with active smelters in Kentucky, South Carolina, and Iceland...

Century Aluminum is a global primary aluminum producer with active smelters in Kentucky, South Carolina, and Iceland totaling ~770,000 tpy capacity, plus a 55% JV interest in Jamalco alumina refinery in Jamaica. Revenue is LME-linked commodity pricing; Glencore accounted for 54% of consolidated 2025 sales; Grundartangi smelter reduced ~two-thirds by electrical failure in Oct 2025.

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