Investors Buy Large Volume of Cameco Put Options (NYSE:CCJ)

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 28,210 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 942% compared to the average daily volume of 2,706 put options.

Cameco Stock Performance

CCJ traded up $0.48 on Friday, hitting $53.59. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 10,937,847 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,443,106. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Cameco has a 12 month low of $35.43 and a 12 month high of $58.72. The firm has a market cap of $23.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 281.95 and a beta of 0.89.

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

Cameco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be given a dividend of $0.118 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. This is a positive change from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.09. This represents a yield of 0.22%. Cameco’s payout ratio is presently 57.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CCJ. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Cameco by 10.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,911,614 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $91,558,000 after acquiring an additional 177,551 shares in the last quarter. Segra Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Cameco in the 3rd quarter worth $53,013,000. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. lifted its stake in Cameco by 31.5% in the third quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 13,853 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $662,000 after purchasing an additional 3,322 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Cameco by 108,100.0% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 31,378 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,499,000 after buying an additional 31,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd grew its position in Cameco by 32.3% during the 3rd quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 5,420 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 1,323 shares during the last quarter. 70.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cameco Company Profile

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.