Suncor Energy Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:SU)

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

Suncor Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SU opened at $50.50 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $44.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.94. Suncor Energy has a 1-year low of $30.79 and a 1-year high of $50.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $60.27 billion, a PE ratio of 16.56 and a beta of 0.46.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.22. Suncor Energy had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 13.01%. The company had revenue of $9.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.48 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Suncor Energy will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Suncor Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. This is a positive change from Suncor Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. Suncor Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SU has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Suncor Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $46.15 to $54.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Suncor Energy in a research report on Friday, October 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Suncor Energy from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Suncor Energy in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Suncor Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 64.1% during the 3rd quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 704 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Suncor Energy in the second quarter worth $31,000. Maseco LLP purchased a new position in Suncor Energy in the second quarter worth $32,000. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lifted its holdings in Suncor Energy by 143.5% in the third quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 789 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Suncor Energy by 95.8% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 793 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.37% of the company’s stock.

About Suncor Energy

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.