Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Shares Down 1.8% – Should You Sell?

Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) shares were down 1.8% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $89.44 and last traded at $89.8240. Approximately 3,777,391 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average daily volume of 4,817,328 shares. The stock had previously closed at $91.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CCJ shares. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Cameco from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. National Bankshares reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cameco in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on Cameco to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Glj Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $99.74 target price on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Cameco in a report on Monday, December 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.25.

Cameco Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $39.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 104.45 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $90.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $80.33.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.17). Cameco had a net margin of 15.24% and a return on equity of 8.58%. The company had revenue of $313.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $531.72 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.01) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Cameco Corporation will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is an increase from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.12. This represents a dividend yield of 27.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. Cameco’s payout ratio is currently 19.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its position in shares of Cameco by 15.9% during the third quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 68,695 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,773,000 after buying an additional 9,435 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in Cameco during the 3rd quarter valued at $153,000. Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. boosted its position in Cameco by 69.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. now owns 12,503 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 5,140 shares during the period. Strategic Advocates LLC bought a new position in shares of Cameco in the third quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Manhattan West Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cameco by 3.2% during the third quarter. Manhattan West Asset Management LLC now owns 18,541 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,555,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

Cameco Company Profile

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.