Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Xerox (NYSE:XRX)

Xerox Holdings Co. (NYSE:XRX) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 1,689 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,369% compared to the typical volume of 115 put options.

Xerox Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Xerox stock traded up $0.04 on Friday, hitting $8.43. 1,200,507 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,205,269. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $9.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a PE ratio of 8.03 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95. Xerox has a one year low of $8.02 and a one year high of $19.78.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information technology services provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.26). Xerox had a negative net margin of 21.31% and a positive return on equity of 6.60%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.63 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Xerox will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xerox Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Xerox’s payout ratio is -9.06%.

Institutional Trading of Xerox

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in XRX. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Xerox by 155.5% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,264 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378 shares during the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Xerox in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xerox during the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in Xerox by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,353 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 1,888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in Xerox in the 2nd quarter valued at about $78,000. Institutional investors own 85.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Xerox from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com raised Xerox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on Xerox from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Xerox from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xerox has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $9.50.

Xerox Company Profile

Xerox Holdings Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a workplace technology company that integrates hardware, services, and software for enterprises in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Print and Other; and FITTLE.