Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Shares Up 5.6% - Still a Buy?

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott raised Cameco to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $66.56.

Cameco Stock Up 3.1 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $54.96 and a 200-day moving average of $49.23. 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 $23.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 288.38 and a beta of 0.91.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ - Get Free Report) TSE: CCO last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The basic materials company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.40). Cameco had a net margin of 4.15% and a return on equity of 3.33%. The firm had revenue of $721.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $646.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.24 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Cameco Co. will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cameco Increases Dividend

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Cameco by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 77,053 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,791,000 after buying an additional 7,547 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. grew its holdings in shares of Cameco by 41.7% in the 2nd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 8,216 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $404,000 after purchasing an additional 2,416 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its position in shares of Cameco by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 5,356 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares in the last quarter. Umpqua Bank bought a new position in Cameco during the 2nd quarter valued at about $227,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Cameco by 41.2% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 82,200 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,041,000 after buying an additional 24,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.21% of the company's stock.

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.