Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Trading Up 5.6% – Here’s Why

Cameco Co. (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO)’s share price traded up 5.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $56.16 and last traded at $56.10. 1,635,815 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 41% from the average session volume of 2,754,572 shares. The stock had previously closed at $53.12.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded Cameco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One investment 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 MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $66.56.

Cameco Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 270.38 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $54.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.25.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $646.83 million. Cameco had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 3.33%. Cameco’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.24 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Cameco Co. will post 0.51 EPS for the current year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th were issued a dividend of $0.118 per share. This is a boost from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.09. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a yield of 0.22%. Cameco’s payout ratio is presently 57.89%.

Institutional Trading of Cameco

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Cameco by 6.8% during the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 4,160,009 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $204,672,000 after buying an additional 265,196 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC increased its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 176,183 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Cameco by 58.0% in the 3rd 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. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its holdings in Cameco by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 3,272,805 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $161,022,000 after purchasing an additional 117,722 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP grew its position in shares of Cameco by 19.9% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

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.