Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Shares Down 1.2% – Should You Sell?

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO)’s stock price fell 1.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $48.78 and last traded at $49.09. 854,953 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 3,252,769 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.67.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Cameco Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $54.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.24. 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 has a market cap of $21.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 259.41 and a beta of 0.95.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.01) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.40). The firm 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%. Cameco’s quarterly revenue was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.24 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Cameco Co. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th were issued a dividend of $0.118 per share. This represents a yield of 0.22%. This is a boost from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.09. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 27th. Cameco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cameco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Driehaus Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Cameco by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 3,915,086 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $192,622,000 after buying an additional 176,183 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Cameco by 58.0% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,777,866 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $181,382,000 after purchasing an additional 1,386,639 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its stake in shares of Cameco by 19.9% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 2,478,488 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $118,386,000 after purchasing an additional 410,711 shares during the last quarter. Progeny 3 Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cameco by 7.5% in the third quarter. Progeny 3 Inc. now owns 2,268,132 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $108,326,000 after purchasing an additional 159,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Cameco by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,175,038 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $103,968,000 after purchasing an additional 187,512 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.