Suncor Energy Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:SU)

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 28,315 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 2,998% compared to the average daily volume of 914 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on SU shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Suncor Energy in a report on Friday, October 17th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Suncor Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Suncor Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Suncor Energy from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Suncor Energy currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $56.50.

Suncor Energy Stock Up 0.2%

Suncor Energy stock opened at $45.32 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. Suncor Energy has a 52 week low of $30.79 and a 52 week high of $45.89. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $43.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.21. The firm has a market cap of $54.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.86 and a beta of 0.46.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.22. Suncor Energy had a return on equity of 13.01% and a net margin of 10.61%.The company had revenue of $9.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.48 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Suncor Energy will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Suncor Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is a boost from Suncor Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.3%. Suncor Energy’s payout ratio is currently 56.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Suncor Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Suncor Energy by 14.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 25,015 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $959,000 after purchasing an additional 3,115 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Suncor Energy by 172.7% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 19,844 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $768,000 after buying an additional 12,566 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Suncor Energy by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 63,099 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,443,000 after buying an additional 8,254 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 55,998 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,168,000 after acquiring an additional 2,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 495.4% in the 1st quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 377,406 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $14,613,000 after acquiring an additional 314,018 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.37% of the company’s stock.

Suncor Energy Company Profile

Suncor Energy Inc is a Canadian integrated energy company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company’s operations span the full oil and gas value chain, with principal activities in oil sands development and production, conventional exploration and production, refining, distribution and retail marketing of petroleum products. Suncor supplies crude, synthetic crude and refined fuels as well as related products and services to commercial and consumer markets.

Upstream, Suncor is a major developer and operator of oil sands projects in Alberta, using both mining and in situ technologies to produce bitumen and synthetic crude.