Century Aluminum Company (CENX Quick QuoteCENX - Free Report) logged earnings of 47 cents per share for the fourth quarter of 2024, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents. The figure compares favorably with the prior-year quarter’s earnings of 30 cents per share and earnings of 46 cents per share in the previous quarter.

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Century Aluminum Company Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Century Aluminum Company price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Century Aluminum Company Quote

CENX’s Revenues and Shipments

The company reported net sales of $631 million, up 23.2% year over year. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $560.8 million. Sales also increased 17% sequentially.

The sequential increase in sales in the fourth quarter was due to higher third-party alumina sales, higher aluminum prices and increased regional premiums. This was offset by a 1% decrease in primary aluminum shipments.

Primary aluminum shipments were 166,677 tons, down around 4.1% year over year.

CENX’s Financials

At the end of the quarter, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $32.9 million, down 63% year over year. Net cash used by operating activities was $24.6 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2024.

CENX’s Q1 2025 Outlook

The company forecasts first-quarter 2025 adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $75 million to $85 million, with improved metal pricing and regional premiums offset by higher energy and raw materials costs.

CENX’s Stock Price Performance

Shares of Century Aluminum have gained 85.1% in the past year compared with the industry’s 26.9% rise.

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CENX’s Zacks Rank & Key Picks

CENX currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are ICL Group Ltd. (ICL Quick QuoteICL - Free Report) , Fortuna Mining Corp. (FSM Quick QuoteFSM - Free Report) and Kronos Worldwide (KRO Quick QuoteKRO - Free Report) .

ICL is slated to report fourth-quarter results on Feb. 26. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 6 cents per share. ICL beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters, with the average earnings surprise being 18.1%. ICL carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1(Strong Buy) Rank stocks here.

Fortuna is scheduled to release fourth-quarter results on March 5. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for FSM’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 16 cents per share. FSM, a Zacks Rank #2 stock, has gained around 64% in the past year. FSM beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the last four quarters while missing twice, with the average earnings surprise being 53.5%.

Kronos is expected to report fourth-quarter results on March 5. The consensus estimate for KRO’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 11 cents per share. KRO, carrying a Zacks Rank #2, beat the consensus estimate in three of the last four quarters while missing once, with the average earnings surprise being 41.7%.