Stock Traders Buy High Volume of PBF Energy Put Options (NYSE:PBF)

PBF Energy Inc. (NYSE:PBF) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders acquired 3,130 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 77% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,768 put options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Control Empresarial De Capital purchased 46,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $29.70 per share, with a total value of $1,366,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 29,190,998 shares in the company, valued at $866,972,640.60. This represents a 0.16 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 671,000 shares of company stock worth $17,862,200. Corporate insiders own 6.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of PBF Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PBF. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in PBF Energy by 2,119.6% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 411,307 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,920,000 after acquiring an additional 392,776 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of PBF Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $2,404,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in PBF Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,420,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in PBF Energy during the 4th quarter worth $4,515,000. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in PBF Energy by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 449,017 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $11,921,000 after acquiring an additional 64,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

PBF Energy Stock Performance

PBF Energy stock traded up $0.38 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $19.64. 449,925 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,540,594. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.01. The firm has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.17 and a beta of 1.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.25. PBF Energy has a 52 week low of $18.20 and a 52 week high of $62.88.

PBF Energy (NYSE:PBF) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The oil and gas company reported ($2.82) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.80) by ($1.02). PBF Energy had a negative return on equity of 7.40% and a negative net margin of 1.61%. The business had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.25 billion. On average, analysts expect that PBF Energy will post -1.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PBF Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.60%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. PBF Energy’s payout ratio is presently -23.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on PBF shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of PBF Energy from $31.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on PBF Energy from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on PBF Energy from $25.00 to $22.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of PBF Energy from $28.00 to $22.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of PBF Energy from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.55.

About PBF Energy

PBF Energy Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in refining and supplying petroleum products. The company operates in two segments, Refining and Logistics. It produces gasoline, ultra-low-sulfur diesel, heating oil, diesel fuel, jet fuel, lubricants, petrochemicals, and asphalt, as well as unbranded transportation fuels, petrochemical feedstocks, blending components, and other petroleum products from crude oil.