Why Uranium Energy Stock Zoomed 8% Higher on Friday

Uranium Energy (NYSEMKT: UEC), a miner and processor of the element in its name, did as well as it could have expected in a recent round of capital raising. Investors rewarded the company on Friday by pushing its stock up by more than 8% in a trading session where the S&P 500 index went in the opposite direction with a 2.7% decline.

A powerful trend

Uranium is the fuel traditionally used in nuclear power plants, which have seen quite the renaissance in the U.S. lately. Uranium Energy (the company) is making hay while the sun shines by floating a secondary issue of its common stock.

Image source: Getty Images.

After market hours, the company announced the issue's underwriter (white-shoe investment bank Goldman Sachs) fully exercised its option to purchase additional shares in the offering. Following this, the issue closed.

To put the key numbers on the flotation, Uranium Energy sold 15.5 million of its common shares at a price of $13.15 apiece. Goldman Sachs pulled the lever on its full allotment of nearly 2.33 million shares. The latter sale brought in gross proceeds of almost $30.6 million for the company.

Big build-out

Uranium Energy said it will use the funds it reaped to speed up the development of a state-of-the-art refining and conversion facility for its favorite substance, which feels like a sensible and clever move given the emergence of the nuclear industry. The company added that it will also devote some monies to "general corporate and working capital purposes."

Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Goldman Sachs Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.