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

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Investors bought 28,210 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 942% compared to the typical volume of 2,706 put options.

Cameco Price Performance

Cameco stock opened at $56.68 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $24.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 145.33 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $44.05 and its 200 day moving average is $47.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Cameco has a 52-week low of $35.43 and a 52-week high of $57.55.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $598.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $756.00 million. Cameco had a net margin of 9.72% and a return on equity of 5.63%. Cameco’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.01) EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cameco will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cameco

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CCJ. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cameco in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cameco by 71.5% in the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 571 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cameco by 99.3% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,204 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Cameco in the first quarter worth about $87,000. Finally, BNP Paribas bought a new position in shares of Cameco in the first quarter worth about $93,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Cameco from $59.00 to $60.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Cameco from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Glj Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $63.73 target price on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Cameco from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cameco presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $66.56.

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.