Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Cameco (NYSE:CCJ)

Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ - Get Free Report) TSE: CCO saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders bought 384,705 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,490% compared to the typical volume of 24,198 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cameco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CCJ. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its position in Cameco by 100.0% in the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 600 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in Cameco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new stake in Cameco in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Dagco Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cameco in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Cameco during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CCJ shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Cameco in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Stifel Canada upgraded shares of Cameco to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cameco from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Desjardins began coverage on shares of Cameco in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.65.

Cameco Stock Performance

Shares of Cameco stock opened at $73.02 on Friday. Cameco has a 1 year low of $35.00 and a 1 year high of $75.42. The firm's 50-day moving average is $59.33 and its 200 day moving average is $50.85. The stock has a market cap of $31.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 182.55 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 2.70 and a quick ratio of 1.26.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ - Get Free Report) TSE: CCO last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.07). Cameco had a net margin of 7.50% and a return on equity of 4.47%. The business had revenue of $549.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $890.07 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.13 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 24.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Cameco will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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