Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Trading Down 1.6% Following Weak Earnings

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) shares dropped 1.6% during trading on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $52.44 and last traded at $52.72. Approximately 1,034,676 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 4,398,678 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.58.

The basic materials company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.40). The business had revenue of $721.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $646.83 million. Cameco had a net margin of 9.72% and a return on equity of 5.63%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.24 earnings per share.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be paid a $0.118 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Institutional Trading of Cameco

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cameco by 207.3% during the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 7,990 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 5,390 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in Cameco during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $232,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in Cameco during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $295,000. Allegheny Financial Group LTD raised its stake in Cameco by 31.3% during the 1st quarter. Allegheny Financial Group LTD now owns 14,702 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $637,000 after purchasing an additional 3,506 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Capital Group California Inc. increased its stake in Cameco by 35.9% in the 1st quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 6,827 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $296,000 after acquiring an additional 1,804 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

Cameco Trading Down 1.9 %

The firm has a market cap of $22.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 122.19 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.18.

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.