Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of iQIYI Put Options (NASDAQ:IQ)

iQIYI, Inc. (NASDAQ:IQ) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Traders bought 14,014 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 36% compared to the average daily volume of 10,287 put options.

Institutional Trading of iQIYI

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ballentine Partners LLC purchased a new stake in iQIYI in the 4th quarter worth about $54,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in iQIYI in the 4th quarter worth about $61,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in iQIYI in the 3rd quarter worth about $62,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in iQIYI by 321.9% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 17,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 13,417 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of iQIYI during the fourth quarter worth approximately $114,000. 52.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $9.00 target price on shares of iQIYI in a report on Friday, May 17th. OTR Global reaffirmed a “mixed” rating on shares of iQIYI in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $6.18.

iQIYI Stock Down 2.8 %

IQ opened at $3.86 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $4.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.26. iQIYI has a 52 week low of $3.06 and a 52 week high of $6.47. The company has a market capitalization of $3.70 billion, a PE ratio of 13.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.04. iQIYI had a net margin of 6.23% and a return on equity of 17.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. Analysts forecast that iQIYI will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About iQIYI

iQIYI, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides online entertainment video services in the People's Republic of China. It offers various products and services, including online video, online games, online literature, animations, and other products. The company operates a platform that provides a collection of internet video content, such as professionally produced content licensed from professional content providers and self-produced content.