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

Xerox Holdings Co. (NYSE:XRX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders acquired 1,689 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,369% compared to the typical daily volume of 115 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xerox

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Xerox by 33.2% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 16,969,127 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $176,140,000 after buying an additional 4,228,806 shares in the last quarter. SG Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Xerox during the first quarter valued at approximately $8,466,000. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Xerox by 282.4% in the second quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 353,682 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $4,110,000 after purchasing an additional 261,180 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in Xerox in the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,509,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Xerox during the 1st quarter valued at $4,066,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.36% of the company's stock.

Xerox Trading Up 0.8 %

XRX traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $8.34. 403,639 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,204,700. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.42 and a beta of 1.59. Xerox has a 52 week low of $8.02 and a 52 week high of $19.78. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $9.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $11.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information technology services provider reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.26). The company had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.63 billion. Xerox had a positive return on equity of 6.60% and a negative net margin of 21.31%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Xerox will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xerox Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.99%. Xerox's dividend payout ratio is currently -9.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on XRX. StockNews.com raised Xerox from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Xerox from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Xerox from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Xerox currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $9.50.

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.