Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Centrus Energy Corp. (NYSE:LEU - Get Free Report) shares gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $77.83, but opened at $81.63. Centrus Energy shares last traded at $80.55, with a volume of 232,588 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LEU has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. B. Riley raised their price objective on shares of Centrus Energy from $88.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Roth Capital downgraded Centrus Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Roth Mkm cut their price objective on Centrus Energy from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $92.00.

Centrus Energy Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $75.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $62.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The company has a market capitalization of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67 and a beta of 1.17.

Centrus Energy (NYSE:LEU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported ($0.30) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.48). The business had revenue of $57.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $56.50 million. Centrus Energy had a return on equity of 138.38% and a net margin of 19.24%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Centrus Energy Corp. will post 2.28 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Centrus Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Centrus Energy by 22.2% in the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 124,381 shares of the company's stock worth $6,822,000 after acquiring an additional 22,605 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Centrus Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $281,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Centrus Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $233,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Centrus Energy by 17.3% during the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 5,520 shares of the company's stock worth $303,000 after buying an additional 815 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in Centrus Energy by 53.8% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 148,251 shares of the company's stock worth $6,338,000 after buying an additional 51,836 shares in the last quarter. 49.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Centrus Energy

Centrus Energy Corp. supplies nuclear fuel components and services for the nuclear power industry in the United States, Belgium, Japan, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Low-Enriched Uranium (LEU) and Technical Solutions. The LEU segment sells separative work units (SWU) components of LEU; natural uranium hexafluoride, uranium concentrates, and uranium conversion; and enriched uranium products to utilities that operate nuclear power plants.