WW International Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:WW)

WW International, Inc. (NASDAQ:WW) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders purchased 17,056 call options on the company. This is an increase of 1,502% compared to the typical volume of 1,065 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim cut their price objective on shares of WW International from $12.00 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of WW International from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $6.50 to $1.25 in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $0.75 price objective on shares of WW International in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on WW International from $2.10 to $1.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, WW International currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $4.50.

WW International Trading Up 22.5 %

WW International stock opened at $1.96 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $0.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.31. WW International has a 12 month low of $0.67 and a 12 month high of $13.26. The company has a market cap of $156.27 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.45 and a beta of 1.72.

WW International (NASDAQ:WW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $202.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $210.89 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.04) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that WW International will post -0.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Sima Sistani bought 65,000 shares of WW International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $0.75 per share, with a total value of $48,750.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 267,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $200,557.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 8.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of WW International by 52.1% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 47,409 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 16,244 shares in the last quarter. Connectus Wealth LLC purchased a new position in WW International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $127,000. Empirical Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of WW International in the 1st quarter worth $185,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of WW International by 229.7% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 113,427 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 79,026 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of WW International by 159.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 260,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 160,200 shares during the last quarter. 86.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About WW International

WW International, Inc provides weight management products and services worldwide. It offers a range of nutritional, activity, behavioral, and lifestyle tools and approaches products and services. The company also provides various digital subscription products to wellness and weight management business, which provide interactive and personalized resources that allow users to follow its weight management program through its app and web-based platform; and allows members to inspire and support each other by sharing their experiences with other people on weight health journeys.