Traders Buy High Volume of Cleveland-Cliffs Call Options (NYSE:CLF)

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF) saw some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors bought 90,163 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 85% compared to the typical daily volume of 48,695 call options.

Cleveland-Cliffs Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock opened at $12.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 0.61. Cleveland-Cliffs has a 1 year low of $5.63 and a 1 year high of $16.70. The firm has a market cap of $6.06 billion, a PE ratio of -3.60 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.45.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 20th. The mining company reported ($0.45) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.48) by $0.03. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative net margin of 9.00% and a negative return on equity of 20.02%. The firm had revenue of $4.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.33) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Cleveland-Cliffs will post -0.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CLF has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Cleveland-Cliffs from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $11.00 to $12.00 in a research note on Friday, November 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $14.50 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Glj Research reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $5.75 price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $12.50 to $14.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cleveland-Cliffs presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.78.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 4,315.6% in the 3rd quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,942 shares during the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH bought a new stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 131.3% in the 2nd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,070 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 2,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 819.2% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,684 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,392 shares in the last quarter. 67.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Cleveland-Cliffs

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc is a leading North American producer of iron ore pellets and flat-rolled steel products. Tracing its roots to 1847, the company has evolved from an iron-ore mining concern in the Great Lakes region into a fully integrated steelmaker. Today, Cleveland-Cliffs operates iron ore mining complexes in Michigan and Minnesota as well as steelmaking and finishing facilities across the United States.

The company’s integrated platform begins with direct control of key raw materials, including iron ore and scrap, and extends through every stage of steel production.