Is Uranium One in the cross-hairs of another company? Last week we saw some unusual trading in the shares of UUU, which has sparked a number of rumors that another competitor or global mining giant has its eyes set on acquiring the company.

Uranium One is a Canadian based uranium miner with operations in Kazakhstan, South Africa, Texas and Wyoming. They also have assets in Australia and other parts of the US, but the bulk of their production comes out of Kazakhstan.

Over the past year UUU has been a disastrous investment for anyone who was long. UUU is down over 80% since making its highs last spring/summer (see chart below).

The dismal performance began because of a massive correction in uranium spot prices and was only exacerbated by company specific problems like management’s inflated production expectations (note: the former CEO was fired after the company had no choice but to admit the company would not only miss their previous production guidance but they wouldn’t even come close), a sulfuric acid shortage (a key input required for uranium mining, which in part lead to the production shortfall) and power problems at their operations in South Africa.

Recent Share Activity

Over the past week, UUU’s shares are up almost 30%. Yes, part of that performance can partially be explained by uranium prices beginning to turn around, but if you compare UUU’s performance relative to its closest peers (Cameco (TSE: CCO), Paladin Energy (TSE: PDN), and Denison Mines (TSE: DML)), then you can see something else is driving the price higher.

The end of the summer trading sessions (especially the days leading up to Labour Day) are typically characterized by very low volumes… causing irratic, irrational swings in prices. But, volume in UUU over the last week has been very strong – in fact it’s been the highest it’s been all summer. This doesn’t really sound like investors (institutional or retail) simply returning to a beaten up stock.