Cameco Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:CCJ)

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders purchased 28,210 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 942% compared to the average volume of 2,706 put options.

Cameco Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE CCJ traded down $0.89 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $52.22. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 355,980 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,395,686. Cameco has a 52 week low of $35.43 and a 52 week high of $58.72. The company has a market capitalization of $22.73 billion, a PE ratio of 279.54 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.27.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.40). The company had revenue of $721.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $646.83 million. Cameco had a return on equity of 3.33% and a net margin of 4.15%. The business’s revenue was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.24 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Cameco will post 0.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be issued a $0.118 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a yield of 0.22%. This is a boost from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.09. Cameco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cameco during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,680,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Cameco by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 20,036 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $868,000 after purchasing an additional 2,683 shares during the period. Country Club Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Cameco in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,093,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Cameco by 48.1% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,584,822 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $75,691,000 after acquiring an additional 515,046 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Cameco during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on CCJ shares. Glj Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $63.73 price objective on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Janney Montgomery Scott raised Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Cameco from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. National Bank Financial raised Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised Cameco from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.56.

About Cameco

Cameco Corporation provides uranium for the generation of electricity. It operates through Uranium, Fuel Services, Westinghouse segments. The Uranium segment is involved in the exploration for, mining, and milling, purchase, and sale of uranium concentrate. The Fuel Services segment engages in the refining, conversion, and fabrication of uranium concentrate, as well as the purchase and sale of conversion services.