Sandstorm Gold Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:SAND)

Sandstorm Gold Ltd (NYSE:SAND) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Traders bought 3,250 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 48% compared to the average volume of 2,194 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SAND has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James Financial set a $9.75 price objective on Sandstorm Gold and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. National Bankshares reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Sandstorm Gold in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sandstorm Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. HC Wainwright increased their target price on Sandstorm Gold from $11.50 to $11.75 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Sandstorm Gold from $6.50 to $7.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $9.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sandstorm Gold

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SAND. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Sandstorm Gold by 62.0% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 10,302 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of Sandstorm Gold by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 501,762 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,805,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in Sandstorm Gold by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 552,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,086,000 after purchasing an additional 21,858 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Sandstorm Gold by 115.3% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,469,501 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,200,000 after purchasing an additional 786,951 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Sandstorm Gold by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 129,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 4,068 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.97% of the company’s stock.

Sandstorm Gold Stock Performance

Sandstorm Gold stock opened at $10.25 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $8.94 and its 200-day moving average is $7.39. The company has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 102.51 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.77 and a quick ratio of 1.77. Sandstorm Gold has a 12 month low of $4.92 and a 12 month high of $10.44.

Sandstorm Gold (NYSE:SAND) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.01). Sandstorm Gold had a net margin of 15.80% and a return on equity of 2.00%. The company had revenue of $50.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $71.61 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Sandstorm Gold will post 0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Sandstorm Gold Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.02 per share. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 15th. This is a positive change from Sandstorm Gold’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.01. Sandstorm Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.00%.

Sandstorm Gold Company Profile

Sandstorm Gold Ltd. operates as a gold royalty company. The company focuses on acquiring royalties and gold and other metals purchase agreements from companies that have advanced stage operating mines. It offers upfront payments for companies to acquire a stream and receives the right to purchase a percentage of a mine's production for the life of the mine.