NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Shares of Century Aluminum Co. (CENX) - Get Report fell 13.95% to $17.03 in morning trading today as peer company Alcoa (AA) - Get Report was downgraded this morning.

Analysts at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch lowered Alcoa's rating to "neutral" from "buy" on shares of the aluminum producer.

The firm also cut Alcoa's price target to $17 from $20, citing "worsening aluminum fundamentals" for the downgrade. Analysts at BofA/Merrill Lynch noted pressure from LME warehouse rules changes as well as Chinese exports affecting the company's near-term outlook.

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The firm added that while aluminum can be more defensive versus other commodities, it is no longer expected that falling premiums can be offset by LME price strength in the near term.

Shares of Alcoa fell more than 6% in morning trading.

Separately, the average recommendation of eight brokers' estimates on Century Aluminum is a 2.3, with a 2 rating representing an "outperform" and a 3 a "hold," according to Reuters. The mean price target is $27.50.

Century Aluminum Co. is a Chicago-based holding company engaged in the production of primary aluminum. The company's annualized primary aluminum production capacity is approximately 1,033,000 tons per year.

TheStreet Ratings team rates CENTURY ALUMINUM CO as a Buy with a ratings score of B. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

"We rate CENTURY ALUMINUM CO (CENX) a BUY. This is driven by multiple strengths, which we believe should have a greater impact than any weaknesses, and should give investors a better performance opportunity than most stocks we cover. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its robust revenue growth, solid stock price performance, impressive record of earnings per share growth, compelling growth in net income and good cash flow from operations. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company shows low profit margins."

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings Team goes as follows:

• The revenue growth greatly exceeded the industry average of 2.5%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 37.4%. Growth in the company's revenue appears to have helped boost the earnings per share.
• Powered by its strong earnings growth of 672.72% and other important driving factors, this stock has surged by 68.06% over the past year, outperforming the rise in the S&P 500 Index during the same period. Regarding the stock's future course, although almost any stock can fall in a broad market decline, CENX should continue to move higher despite the fact that it has already enjoyed a very nice gain in the past year.
• CENTURY ALUMINUM CO reported significant earnings per share improvement in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past two years. We feel that this trend should continue. During the past fiscal year, CENTURY ALUMINUM CO turned its bottom line around by earning $1.13 versus -$0.46 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($2.58 versus $1.13).
• The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has significantly exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the Metals & Mining industry. The net income increased by 739.3% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, rising from -$9.68 million to $61.85 million.
• Net operating cash flow has significantly increased by 534.02% to $98.70 million when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, CENTURY ALUMINUM CO has also vastly surpassed the industry average cash flow growth rate of -57.24%.
• You can view the full analysis from the report here: CENX Ratings Report