Investors Purchase High Volume of Put Options on Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU)

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders purchased 28,315 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 2,998% compared to the typical daily volume of 914 put options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Suncor Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Suncor Energy in a research note on Friday, October 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Suncor Energy in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Suncor Energy in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research cut Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Suncor Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $65.00.

Suncor Energy Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE SU opened at $44.47 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.75. Suncor Energy has a one year low of $30.79 and a one year high of $45.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.77.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $9.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.82 billion. Suncor Energy had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 13.21%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.48 EPS. Research analysts expect that Suncor Energy will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Suncor Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This is an increase from Suncor Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 3rd. Suncor Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.74%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Suncor Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AE Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Suncor Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $215,000. HB Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Suncor Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $616,000. Fiera Capital Corp raised its position in shares of Suncor Energy by 29.1% during the first quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 1,919,956 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $74,416,000 after purchasing an additional 432,632 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Suncor Energy in the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Suncor Energy in the 1st quarter worth $297,000. Institutional investors own 67.37% of the company’s stock.

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.