Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Sandstorm Gold Call Options (NYSE:SAND)

Sandstorm Gold Ltd. (NYSE:SAND) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders bought 4,331 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 209% compared to the average daily volume of 1,400 call options.

Sandstorm Gold Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of SAND opened at $7.58 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.00. The company has a market cap of $2.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 151.53 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Sandstorm Gold has a twelve month low of $4.92 and a twelve month high of $7.74.

Sandstorm Gold (NYSE:SAND) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.04 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $47.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.49 million. Sandstorm Gold had a return on equity of 0.98% and a net margin of 8.11%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.04) EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Sandstorm Gold will post 0.18 EPS for the current year.

Sandstorm Gold Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a $0.014 dividend. This represents a $0.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. Sandstorm Gold’s dividend payout ratio is presently 100.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sandstorm Gold

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAND. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co bought a new stake in shares of Sandstorm Gold during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,177,000. Pullen Investment Management LLC raised its position in Sandstorm Gold by 44.2% during the 4th quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 180,819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,009,000 after purchasing an additional 55,459 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Sandstorm Gold by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 127,166 shares of the company’s stock worth $711,000 after buying an additional 4,792 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Sandstorm Gold by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 140,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $785,000 after buying an additional 6,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in shares of Sandstorm Gold by 580.6% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,314,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,916,000 after buying an additional 1,974,600 shares during the period. 51.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SAND. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sandstorm Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Sandstorm Gold from $6.75 to $7.25 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, HC Wainwright dropped their price target on Sandstorm Gold from $12.00 to $11.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $8.56.

About Sandstorm Gold

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.