Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Trading 3.9% Higher – Should You Buy?

Shares of Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) were up 3.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $56.25 and last traded at $55.64. Approximately 3,003,437 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 19% from the average daily volume of 3,722,396 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.56.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott raised shares of Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $66.56.

Cameco Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $54.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.78 billion, a PE ratio of 299.79 and a beta of 0.95.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.40). The business had revenue of $721.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $646.83 million. Cameco had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 3.33%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.24 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Cameco Co. will post 0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th were paid a $0.118 dividend. This is a positive change from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.09. This represents a yield of 0.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 27th. Cameco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.16%.

Institutional Trading of Cameco

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CCJ. Dantai Capital Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Cameco by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Dantai Capital Ltd now owns 57,260 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,735,000 after purchasing an additional 17,560 shares in the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Cameco in the third quarter valued at approximately $5,305,000. Telemark Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Cameco by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Telemark Asset Management LLC now owns 1,300,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $62,088,000 after buying an additional 100,000 shares during the period. Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Cameco in the 4th quarter valued at $895,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Cameco by 1,138.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 267,431 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $12,774,000 after buying an additional 245,831 shares during the last quarter. 70.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.