Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Stock Price Up 5.2% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• CCJ jumped 5.2% midday to as high as $119.80 (last at $115.96) on roughly 3.45 million shares traded, about 16% below its average daily volume.
• Analyst consensus is a "Moderate Buy" (11 Buys, 3 Holds) with an average price target of $150.40, though individual reports range from downgrades to much higher targets (e.g., CIBC $202, GLJ $171.20).
• Company fundamentals and ownership look supportive: Cameco beat quarterly estimates (EPS $0.36 vs $0.29; revenue $874.6M vs $782.1M), has a ~$50.5B market cap and roughly 70% institutional ownership with several large funds recently increasing positions.

Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ - Get Free Report) TSE: CCO's stock price rose 5.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $119.80 and last traded at $115.9640. Approximately 3,454,640 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 16% from the average daily volume of 4,129,070 shares. The stock had previously closed at $110.23.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CCJ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered Cameco from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce boosted their target price on Cameco to $202.00 in a research report on Monday, March 9th. TD Securities lowered Cameco from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Glj Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $171.20 target price (up from $100.00) on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Cameco from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $150.40.

Cameco Stock Up 5.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The stock has a market cap of $50.51 billion, a PE ratio of 119.55 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a fifty day moving average of $114.83 and a 200-day moving average of $101.39.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ - Get Free Report) TSE: CCO last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The basic materials company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $874.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $782.13 million. Cameco had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 17.00%.Cameco's quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.36 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cameco Corporation will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cameco

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CCJ. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Cameco in the 4th quarter valued at $443,265,000. TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Cameco by 116.7% in the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 4,622,932 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $388,068,000 after acquiring an additional 2,489,207 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its position in shares of Cameco by 41.4% in the 2nd quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 7,076,815 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $524,988,000 after acquiring an additional 2,071,373 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Cameco by 7,481.3% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,752,571 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $160,343,000 after acquiring an additional 1,729,454 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Cameco by 43.3% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,443,807 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $456,530,000 after acquiring an additional 1,644,061 shares during the period. 70.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cameco

Cameco Corporation NYSE: CCJ is a leading producer of uranium and a supplier to the global nuclear power industry. Headquartered in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, the company is engaged in the exploration, mining, milling and sale of uranium concentrate, commonly known as yellowcake, which is used as fuel for nuclear reactors. Cameco also participates in services and activities that support the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle, including processing and marketing of uranium to utilities under long‑term and spot contracts.

The company's operations have historically centered in Canada and the United States, where it operates and develops uranium mining and processing properties.

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