Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) Shares Up 5.6% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Cameco Corporation (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) shot up 5.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $109.23 and last traded at $108.5740. 3,863,045 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 9% from the average session volume of 4,265,241 shares. The stock had previously closed at $102.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CCJ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $147.00 price target on shares of Cameco in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Zacks Research downgraded Cameco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Cameco in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. TD Securities downgraded shares of Cameco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Cameco from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cameco has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $150.40.

Cameco Stock Up 1.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $49.01 billion, a PE ratio of 116.00 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Cameco (NYSE:CCJ) (TSE:CCO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The basic materials company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.07. Cameco had a return on equity of 9.35% and a net margin of 17.00%.The firm had revenue of $874.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $782.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.36 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Cameco Corporation will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cameco

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Cameco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $443,265,000. TD Asset Management Inc raised 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 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 lifted its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Cameco by 7,481.3% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,752,571 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $160,343,000 after acquiring an additional 1,729,454 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Cameco by 43.3% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,443,807 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $456,530,000 after acquiring an additional 1,644,061 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.21% of the company’s stock.

Cameco Company Profile

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.