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 purchased 28,315 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 2,998% compared to the typical volume of 914 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Suncor Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Suncor Energy by 32.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 82,204 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $3,035,000 after buying an additional 20,081 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Suncor Energy by 1,345.8% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 468,415 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $17,309,000 after acquiring an additional 436,016 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Suncor Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,376,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 1,324.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,469,008 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $123,774,000 after purchasing an additional 3,225,543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DRW Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Suncor Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,151,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SU has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of Suncor Energy in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley cut Suncor Energy from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Desjardins upgraded Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Suncor Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.00.

Suncor Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SU opened at $38.74 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $48.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.12. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.54. Suncor Energy has a 52 week low of $31.25 and a 52 week high of $41.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. Suncor Energy had a return on equity of 15.67% and a net margin of 15.19%. Equities research analysts forecast that Suncor Energy will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Suncor Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were given a dividend of $0.4089 per share. This is a positive change from Suncor Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.22%. Suncor Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 35.08%.

Suncor Energy Company Profile

Suncor Energy Inc operates as an integrated energy company in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; and Refining and Marketing segments. The Oil Sands segment explores, develops, and produces bitumen, synthetic crude oil, and related products.