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

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) saw unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 384,705 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 1,490% compared to the average daily volume of 24,198 call options.

Cameco Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of CCJ opened at $49.25 on Friday. Cameco has a 52 week low of $35.00 and a 52 week high of $62.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 175.89 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 2.88.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.07). Cameco had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 4.34%. The company had revenue of $549.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $890.07 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 24.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Cameco will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on CCJ shares. Stifel Canada raised shares of Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Cameco in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Glj Research raised their target price on Cameco from $62.76 to $75.68 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Cameco in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Cameco from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cameco currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $70.03.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cameco

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Cameco in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Cameco by 9.2% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 25,396 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,213,000 after acquiring an additional 2,142 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cameco by 1,138.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 267,431 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $12,774,000 after buying an additional 245,831 shares during the last quarter. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. bought a new stake in shares of Cameco in the 4th quarter valued at about $206,000. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Cameco by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 8,845 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $455,000 after buying an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. 70.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.