Investors Purchase High Volume of Xerox Put Options (NYSE:XRX)

Xerox Holdings Co. (NYSE:XRX) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders bought 1,689 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 1,369% compared to the average volume of 115 put options.

Xerox Stock Performance

Shares of XRX opened at $16.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -80.95 and a beta of 1.56. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $17.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.29. Xerox has a 1 year low of $12.06 and a 1 year high of $19.78.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The information technology services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.79 billion. Xerox had a net margin of 0.01% and a return on equity of 9.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Xerox will post 2.27 EPS for the current year.

Xerox Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.18%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Xerox’s dividend payout ratio is currently -500.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xerox

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in Xerox by 8.7% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 752,435 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $13,469,000 after purchasing an additional 60,446 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Xerox during the first quarter worth approximately $405,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in Xerox during the fourth quarter worth approximately $386,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Xerox during the fourth quarter worth approximately $460,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Xerox by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,981,297 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $292,937,000 after purchasing an additional 190,034 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Xerox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Xerox from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th.

About Xerox

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.