Investors Purchase Large Volume of Suncor Energy Put Options (NYSE:SU)

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 28,315 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 2,998% compared to the average volume of 914 put options.

Suncor Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SU opened at $35.31 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $35.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $37.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.54 billion, a PE ratio of 10.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.79. Suncor Energy has a fifty-two week low of $30.79 and a fifty-two week high of $41.95.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. Suncor Energy had a return on equity of 15.37% and a net margin of 11.80%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Suncor Energy will post 3.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Suncor Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.399 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. Suncor Energy’s payout ratio is 45.51%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Suncor Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SU. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 86.0% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 67,848 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,421,000 after purchasing an additional 31,366 shares during the period. Sage Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Suncor Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $300,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Suncor Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $236,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Suncor Energy by 104.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,083,440 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $110,017,000 after acquiring an additional 1,573,726 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Suncor Energy by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,457,325 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $159,030,000 after purchasing an additional 99,669 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on SU shares. StockNews.com downgraded Suncor Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Cibc World Mkts upgraded shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Suncor Energy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of Suncor Energy in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. raised Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.20.

About Suncor Energy

Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; and Refining and Marketing segments. The Oil Sands segment explores, develops, and produces bitumen, synthetic crude oil, and related products.