Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Cameco (NYSE:CCJ)

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 28,210 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 942% compared to the average volume of 2,706 put options.

Cameco Stock Performance

CCJ traded up $0.46 during trading on Friday, hitting $53.57. The stock had a trading volume of 10,918,419 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,443,106. The firm has a market cap of $23.31 billion, a PE ratio of 290.28 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Cameco has a 12 month low of $35.43 and a 12 month high of $58.72. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $49.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.30.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.40). The business had revenue of $721.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $646.83 million. Cameco had a return on equity of 3.33% and a net margin of 4.15%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.24 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Cameco will post 0.69 EPS for the current year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced an annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be paid a $0.118 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. This is a boost from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.09. Cameco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CCJ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Cameco from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Scotiabank lowered their price target on Cameco from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Glj Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $63.73 price objective on shares of Cameco in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded shares of Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $66.56.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cameco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Cameco in the first quarter worth about $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cameco by 71.5% during the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 571 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. Pingora Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Cameco in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in Cameco by 84.2% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 768 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the period. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cameco by 130.6% during the third quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 971 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the period. 70.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.