Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Trading Up 1.6% – Time to Buy?

Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO)’s stock price rose 1.6% on Friday . The company traded as high as $124.11 and last traded at $123.8610. Approximately 3,385,351 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 24% from the average daily volume of 4,452,544 shares. The stock had previously closed at $121.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. National Bankshares reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cameco in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Zacks Research raised Cameco from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wall Street Zen cut Cameco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on Cameco in a research note on Monday, November 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 price target on the stock. Two 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.68.

Cameco Trading Up 1.6%

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 stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.34. The company has a market cap of $53.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 144.02 and a beta of 1.01.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.05 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $313.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $531.72 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.01) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Cameco Corporation will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

The firm 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 represents a yield of 27.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from Cameco’s previous annual dividend of $0.12. Cameco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Cameco by 1.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,801,142 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,493,978,000 after purchasing an additional 235,613 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Cameco by 0.8% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 13,503,924 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,133,147,000 after buying an additional 106,872 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Cameco by 0.7% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 12,973,799 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,089,080,000 after buying an additional 85,762 shares during the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its holdings in Cameco by 41.4% during the second 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 during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Cameco by 43.3% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.