Investors Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Cameco (NYSE:CCJ)

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors acquired 384,705 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 1,490% compared to the average volume of 24,198 call options.

Cameco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CCJ traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $49.01. The company had a trading volume of 865,334 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,014,896. The company has a market capitalization of $21.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.97 and a beta of 0.92. Cameco has a 1 year low of $25.72 and a 1 year high of $52.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $44.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.85.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The basic materials company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.21 by ($0.06). Cameco had a return on equity of 5.61% and a net margin of 13.97%. The company had revenue of $620.00 million during the quarter. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Cameco will post 1.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Cameco

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Cameco by 0.3% in the first quarter. Murphy Pohlad Asset Management LLC now owns 75,720 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,280,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Cameco by 26.0% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,070 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Cameco by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd. now owns 8,897 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $383,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Cameco by 12.3% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,290 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Ingalls & Snyder LLC raised its position in shares of Cameco by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 12,264 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $529,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. 70.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CCJ. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Cameco in a research note on Monday, April 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Cameco from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cameco presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.75.

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.