Traders Purchase Large Volume of Cameco Call Options (NYSE:CCJ)

Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) was the target of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders acquired 384,705 call options on the company. This is an increase of 1,490% compared to the typical daily volume of 24,198 call options.

Cameco Price Performance

Shares of Cameco stock opened at $94.07 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 2.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The business has a 50 day moving average of $89.27 and a 200 day moving average of $78.45. The company has a market cap of $40.96 billion, a PE ratio of 109.38 and a beta of 1.07. Cameco has a 52 week low of $35.00 and a 52 week high of $110.15.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $313.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $531.72 million. Cameco had a net margin of 15.24% and a return on equity of 8.58%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.01) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cameco will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 27.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This is an increase from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.12. Cameco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on CCJ shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Cameco in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Cameco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Cameco from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. UBS Group started coverage on Cameco in a research report on Monday, November 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Cameco from $95.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cameco

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Cameco by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,801,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,493,978,000 after acquiring an additional 235,613 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Cameco by 39.3% in the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 14,048,244 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $578,226,000 after purchasing an additional 3,959,837 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of Cameco by 0.8% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,503,924 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,133,147,000 after purchasing an additional 106,872 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Cameco by 0.7% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,973,799 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,089,080,000 after purchasing an additional 85,762 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its holdings in shares of Cameco by 41.4% during the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 7,076,815 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $524,988,000 after purchasing an additional 2,071,373 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

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.