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

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) saw 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 average daily volume of 914 put options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on SU shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Suncor Energy from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Suncor Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James raised Suncor Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Suncor Energy from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, TD Securities boosted their price objective on Suncor Energy from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.67.

Suncor Energy Price Performance

NYSE SU opened at $38.20 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.51. The business’s fifty day moving average is $38.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.14. Suncor Energy has a 1 year low of $28.65 and a 1 year high of $41.50.

Suncor Energy (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.15. Suncor Energy had a return on equity of 15.69% and a net margin of 15.38%. The company had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.64 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Suncor Energy will post 3.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Suncor Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 4th were paid a dividend of $0.395 per share. This represents a $1.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.14%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 4th. Suncor Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.19%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SU. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its position in Suncor Energy by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 29,873 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $957,000 after acquiring an additional 2,895 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Suncor Energy by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 50,379,614 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,732,051,000 after buying an additional 731,163 shares during the period. Sanders Capital LLC lifted its position in Suncor Energy by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 57,318,037 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,836,470,000 after buying an additional 1,568,629 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 1,689.9% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 565,339 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $18,118,000 after buying an additional 533,754 shares during the period. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Suncor Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $1,100,000. 67.37% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.