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

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

Cameco Price Performance

CCJ opened at $42.16 on Friday. Cameco has a 1 year low of $35.43 and a 1 year high of $62.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 2.88. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $49.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.35 billion, a PE ratio of 150.59 and a beta of 0.94.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.26. The company had revenue of $845.54 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion. Cameco had a net margin of 5.39% and a return on equity of 4.34%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Cameco will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CCJ has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Cameco from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $90.00 target price on shares of Cameco in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cameco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. US Bancorp DE increased its position in Cameco by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 28,174 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,346,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR grew its stake in Cameco by 137.6% during the third quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 15,293 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $730,000 after buying an additional 8,857 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of Cameco by 700.2% in the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 46,218 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,207,000 after acquiring an additional 40,442 shares in the last quarter. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Cameco by 46.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC now owns 18,860 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $901,000 after acquiring an additional 5,970 shares during the period. Finally, Old West Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cameco by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC now owns 282,072 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $13,472,000 after acquiring an additional 26,584 shares in the last quarter. 70.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.