Investors Purchase High Volume of Put Options on Cameco (NYSE:CCJ)

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors purchased 28,210 put options on the company. This is an increase of 942% compared to the average daily volume of 2,706 put options.

Cameco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CCJ opened at $56.01 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 294.79 and a beta of 0.91. Cameco has a 52 week low of $35.43 and a 52 week high of $62.55.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company’s revenue was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.24 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Cameco will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be given a $0.118 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. This is an increase from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.09. This represents a yield of 0.22%. Cameco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.89%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Cameco by 2.1% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 9,149 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $437,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC grew its position in Cameco by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 3,655 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Silvia Mccoll Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Cameco by 3.9% in the third quarter. Silvia Mccoll Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,610 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. EdgeRock Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Cameco by 1.7% during the third quarter. EdgeRock Capital LLC now owns 13,689 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $654,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cameco by 39.0% during the second quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 834 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on CCJ shares. National Bank Financial raised shares of Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Cameco from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded 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 given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average 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.