New Gold Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:NGD)

New Gold Inc. (NYSE:NGD) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 36,311 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 743% compared to the average volume of 4,306 call options.

New Gold Stock Performance

NYSE NGD opened at $2.51 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $2.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $2.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.42. New Gold has a 52-week low of $1.09 and a 52-week high of $3.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a PE ratio of 125.50 and a beta of 1.32.

New Gold (NYSE:NGD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.04. New Gold had a net margin of 2.33% and a return on equity of 9.38%. The company had revenue of $252.00 million during the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that New Gold will post 0.18 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of New Gold from $3.00 to $3.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. StockNews.com upgraded New Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on New Gold from $2.75 to $3.25 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $3.41.

Institutional Trading of New Gold

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in New Gold by 941.8% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 9,418 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of New Gold during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Scientech Research LLC bought a new position in New Gold in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Rathbones Group PLC bought a new position in New Gold in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC purchased a new position in New Gold in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. 42.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About New Gold

New Gold Inc, an intermediate gold mining company, develops and operates of mineral properties in Canada. It primarily explores for gold, silver, and copper deposits. The company’s principal operating properties include 100% interest in the Rainy River mine located in Northwestern Ontario, Canada; and New Afton project situated in South-Central British Columbia.