Five Uranium Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds

Although uranium prices have crashed since the tragic Fukushima disaster, some analysts think a revival in the uranium sector could be impending amid an increasing appetite for alternative energy sources around the world. Several uranium analysts such as David Talbot of Dundee Capital Markets and Raymond Goldie of Salman Partners predict that uranium prices are set to double by 2020. Having that in mind, let’s have a look at some of the popular uranium stocks by assessing the latest hedge funds’ sentiment and fundamental news around them.

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Cameco Corporation (USA) (NYSE:CCJ)

At the end of the third quarter, 17 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey were bullish on Cameco Corporation (USA) (NYSE:CCJ), down from 19 funds a quarter earlier. According to our data, David Iben’s Kopernik Global Investors was the biggest stakeholder among these hedge funds with 7.78 million shares of the Canadian company, followed by Phill Gross and Robert Atchinson‘s Adage Capital Management with 6.11 million shares. In the third quarter, Cameco earned $0.30 a share on $670 million, much better than the Street’s projection of $0.22 EPS and $494.13 million revenue. The stock has lost over 22% year-to-date.

AngloGold Ashanti Limited (ADR) (NYSE:AU)

Of the 742 funds tracked by Insider Monkey, 21 funds reported owning long positions in AngloGold Ashanti Limited (ADR) (NYSE:AU) at the end of the third quarter, down from 27 funds a quarter earlier. The hedge funds own over 9% of the company’s total float. In the third quarter, the South Africa-based company posted a free cash flow of $160 million, compared to $50 million reported in the same quarter last year. For the full year, the company narrowed its production forecast to 3.6Moz and 3.65Moz from the previously announced 3.6Moz and 3.8Moz. Although the company’s main product is gold, AngloGold makes uranium as a byproduct of its mining.

BHP Billiton Limited (ADR) (NYSE:BHP)

BHP Billiton Limited (ADR) (NYSE:BHP) was in the portfolios of 19 hedge funds in our system at the end of the third quarter, compared to 17 funds a quarter earlier. Dmitry Balyasny’s Balyasny Asset Management was a notable elite fund holder with over 1.9 million shares of the company. Recently, Moody’s changed their rating for the Australia-based metals company to ‘Stable’ from ‘Negative’.  The firm said that BHP will continue to experience margin improvement and increased free cash flow generation over the next 12-to-18 months. BHP’s CEO Andrew Mackenzie said in statement on third quarter earnings call that “capital discipline”, improved productivity, burgeoning volumes of copper, iron ore, metallurgical coal and steadier markets will result in strong free cash flows in the near future.

Rio Tinto plc (ADR) (NYSE:RIO)

A total of 18 hedge funds in our database own $394.22 million worth of Rio Tinto plc (ADR) (NYSE:RIO)’s shares, as of the end of the third quarter, down from 21 funds a quarter earlier. Robert Bishop’s Impala Asset Management stands out among these investors with 3.36 million shares of the company. The London-based mining company recently fired two of its senior executives after an internal probe found them guilty of $10.5 million embezzlement. Amid uncertain future prospects in the commodity sector, the second largest mining company in the world recently said it will cut its spending to $3.5 billion for 2016, down from the previous estimate of $4 billion. Rio’s stock is up over 41% year-to-date.

 Uranium Energy Corp. (NYSEMKT:UEC)

Just 4 hedge funds in our database owned shares of the Texas-based Uranium Energy Corp. (NYSEMKT:UEC), compared to 6 funds a quarter earlier. The company’s CFO Pat Obara sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction November 2. Eric Sprott’s Sprott Asset Management owns 179,636 shares of the company. The stock has lost 16% year-to-date.

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