Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Trading Up 5.6% – Time to Buy?

Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO)’s share price shot up 5.6% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $122.42 and last traded at $122.31. 5,446,736 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 19% from the average session volume of 4,563,497 shares. The stock had previously closed at $115.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CCJ shares. UBS Group initiated coverage on Cameco in a report on Monday, November 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Cameco from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Cameco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Glj Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $99.74 price objective on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cameco in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.68.

Cameco Trading Up 5.6%

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $94.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a market capitalization of $53.26 billion, a PE ratio of 142.22 and a beta of 1.01.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.17). Cameco had a return on equity of 8.58% and a net margin of 15.24%.The business had revenue of $313.74 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $531.72 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.01) EPS. The company’s revenue was down 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Cameco Corporation will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a positive change from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.12. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This represents a yield of 27.0%. Cameco’s payout ratio is currently 19.77%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cameco

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cameco in the second quarter worth about $341,736,000. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in Cameco by 116.7% during the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 4,622,932 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $388,068,000 after buying an additional 2,489,207 shares during the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew 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 worth $524,988,000 after acquiring an additional 2,071,373 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings 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 last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Markets Cayman LP bought a new stake in shares of Cameco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $128,370,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

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.