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

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

XRX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Xerox from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Xerox from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Xerox from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Xerox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Xerox presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $9.50.

Xerox Price Performance

NYSE XRX opened at $9.06 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $9.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $11.06. Xerox has a 52 week low of $8.02 and a 52 week high of $19.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -0.82 and a beta of 1.59.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information technology services provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.63 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.46 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Xerox will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Xerox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Xerox’s payout ratio is -9.06%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CWM LLC raised its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 1,378 shares during the period. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Xerox in the third quarter worth $29,000. US Bancorp DE raised its position in shares of Xerox by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,353 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,888 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xerox during the 2nd quarter valued at $78,000. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in Xerox by 45.0% in the 2nd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 9,346 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 2,899 shares during the period. 85.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.