Century Aluminum Company CENX reported earnings of $3.23 per share for the first quarter of 2026. It compares favorably with the prior-year quarter’s earnings of 29 cents. 

Barring one-time items, adjusted earnings came in at $1.06 per share. The bottom line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.16. 

Adjusted EBITDA was $231.4 million, up from $78 million in the prior-year quarter. 

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 $649.2 million, up 2.4% year over year. However, the figure missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $652.2 million. 

The increase in sales was driven by higher aluminum prices, which more than offset lower shipment volumes. 

Primary aluminum shipments were 122,865 tons, down around 27% year over year and around 12% sequentially. 

CENX’s Financials

At the end of the quarter, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $244.1 million, up 81.9% from the previous quarter. 

CENX’s Q2 Outlook

The company forecasts second-quarter 2026 adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $315 million to $335 million, supported by higher realized LME and regional premiums, energy benefits and favorable volume/mix, partly offset by raw material costs and OPEX/other items. 

CENX Stock’s Price Performance

Shares of Century Aluminum have risen 250.3% in the past year compared with the industry’s 55.8% growth.

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CENX’s Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks

CENX currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Other top-ranked stocks worth a look in the basic materials space are Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. SQM, Idaho Strategic Resources, Inc. IDR and Hawkins, Inc. HWKN.

Sociedad is slated to report first-quarter 2026 results on May 26. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for loss is pegged at $1.78 per share, indicating 270.8% year-over-year growth. SQM has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present.

Idaho is expected to report first-quarter 2026 results on May 14. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at 43 cents per share, indicating 258.3% year-over-year growth. IDR sports a Zacks Rank #1 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Hawkins is scheduled to report fiscal fourth-quarter results on May 13. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HWKN’s fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 76 cents per share. HWKN currently has a Zacks Rank #2.

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Sociedad Quimica y Minera S.A. (SQM) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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