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

Suncor Energy Inc. (NYSE:SU) (TSE:SU) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research began coverage on Suncor Energy in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $68.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Suncor Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Desjardins raised shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, TD Securities raised shares of Suncor Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Suncor Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.40.

Institutional Trading of Suncor Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Suncor Energy by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,226,454 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,890,768,000 after acquiring an additional 691,497 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of Suncor Energy by 5.1% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 25,134,149 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $956,850,000 after purchasing an additional 1,209,073 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Suncor Energy by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 23,048,048 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $878,131,000 after purchasing an additional 366,432 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Suncor Energy by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 22,157,546 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $817,835,000 after buying an additional 868,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Suncor Energy by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,529,253 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $683,916,000 after buying an additional 1,031,542 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.37% of the company’s stock.

Suncor Energy Stock Up 2.4 %

NYSE SU traded up $0.96 during trading on Thursday, reaching $40.56. 724,427 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,235,750. Suncor Energy has a 12-month low of $29.45 and a 12-month high of $41.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market cap of $51.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.12. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.74.

Suncor Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be paid a $0.4089 dividend. This is an increase from Suncor Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.03%. Suncor Energy’s payout ratio is 35.29%.

About Suncor Energy

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.