Century Aluminum's (CENX) Q2 Earnings & Sales Beat Estimates
Century Aluminum Company CENX logged second-quarter 2023 earnings of 7 cents per share compared with the year-ago quarter's earnings of 36 cents.
Barring one-time items, earnings per share were 16 cents in the reported quarter against the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 12 cents. The company benefited from decreased energy prices, which were somewhat countered by an unfavorable sales mix and operational expenditures aimed at ensuring stability.
Century Aluminum Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Century Aluminum Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Century Aluminum Company Quote
Revenues and Shipments
The company generated net sales of $575.5 million in the reported quarter, down around 32.8% year over year. The figure however beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $521.2 million.
Primary aluminum shipments were 173,649 tons, down around 18.8% year over year. It lagged our estimate of 189,200 tons.
Financials
At the end of the quarter, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $50.6 million, up 68.7% year over year.
Net cash used by operating activities was $1.9 million in the six-month period (ended Jun 30, 2023) against net cash provided of $68.6 million in the year-ago period.
Outlook
Century expects its adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter to be in the range of $10-$20 million, factoring in the impact of lower LME prices and VAP sales, partially mitigated by higher volume, as well as reduced costs for raw materials and operations.
Price Performance
Shares of Century Aluminum have lost 5.9% in the past year against a 17.4% rise of the industry.
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Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Century Aluminum currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Some better-ranked stocks in the Industrial Products space include Caterpillar Inc. CAT, sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), and A. O. Smith Corporation AOS and Eaton Corporation plc ETN, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CAT’s current-year earnings has been revised 8% upward in the past 90 days. CAT beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters, with the average earnings surprise being 49.2%. The company’s shares have gained 5% in the past year.
The earnings estimate for AOS’s current year is pegged at $3.56, indicating year-over-year growth of 13.4%. AOS beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all the last four quarters, with the average earnings surprise being 10.5%. The company’s shares have rallied 18% in the past year.
The earnings estimate for ETN’s current year is pegged at $8.76, indicating year-over-year growth of 15.7%. ETN beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters. It delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 3% on average. The company’s shares have risen roughly 45.9% in the past year.
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