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

Xerox Holdings Co. (NYSE:XRX) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors purchased 1,689 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,369% compared to the average volume of 115 put options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xerox

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Xerox by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,791,263 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $247,765,000 after purchasing an additional 1,464,851 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Xerox during the fourth quarter worth about $17,470,000. Intrinsic Edge Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xerox in the fourth quarter worth about $14,832,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Xerox in the fourth quarter valued at about $9,435,000. Finally, SG Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xerox during the 1st quarter valued at about $8,466,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.36% of the company’s stock.

Xerox Stock Down 8.1 %

Shares of NYSE XRX opened at $10.82 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a PE ratio of -6.89 and a beta of 1.58. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $12.79 and a 200-day moving average of $15.39. Xerox has a 52-week low of $10.28 and a 52-week high of $19.78.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The information technology services provider reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.60 billion. Xerox had a negative net margin of 2.74% and a positive return on equity of 7.77%. Xerox’s revenue was down 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.44 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Xerox will post 2.07 EPS for the current year.

Xerox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.24%. Xerox’s dividend payout ratio is currently -63.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Xerox from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com lowered Xerox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on Xerox in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $11.00 price target on the stock.

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.