Xerox Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:XRX)

Xerox Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:XRX) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 1,689 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,369% compared to the typical daily volume of 115 put options.

Xerox Price Performance

Shares of XRX opened at $1.76 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $225.35 million, a P/E ratio of -0.21 and a beta of 1.71. Xerox has a 1 year low of $1.65 and a 1 year high of $6.81. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $2.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $2.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.94.

Xerox (NASDAQ:XRX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The information technology services provider reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.25). Xerox had a negative net margin of 14.65% and a negative return on equity of 8.26%. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 25.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Xerox will post 1.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Xerox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.025 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.7%. Xerox’s payout ratio is -1.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

XRX has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings started coverage on Xerox in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. They set a “sell (d-)” rating on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Xerox from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $2.50 price target (down from $3.50) on shares of Xerox in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $2.50.

Institutional Trading of Xerox

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Private Management Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Xerox during the second quarter worth about $5,513,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Xerox during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,871,000. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its holdings in Xerox by 275.7% during the 2nd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 255,861 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,348,000 after buying an additional 187,753 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Xerox by 45.5% in the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 785,790 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,141,000 after buying an additional 245,681 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Xerox by 71.0% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,928,444 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $20,703,000 after buying an additional 1,630,999 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.36% of the company’s stock.

Xerox Company Profile

Xerox Holdings Corporation (NYSE: XRX) is a global provider of document management technology and services. The company designs and manufactures a broad range of multifunction printers, production printers, digital presses and related consumables. In addition to its hardware offerings, Xerox delivers software and workflow automation solutions, managed print services and cloud-based document platforms that help organizations optimize their information-intensive processes.

Founded in 1906 as The Haloid Photographic Company, Xerox pioneered xerographic imaging in the late 1940s, launching the first plain-paper copier in 1959.