Affirm Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:AFRM)

Affirm Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:AFRM) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Investors acquired 34,696 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 87% compared to the typical daily volume of 18,557 call options.

Affirm Trading Up 0.3%

AFRM opened at $77.76 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 3.71. Affirm has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $100.00. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $77.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.60. The company has a current ratio of 11.32, a quick ratio of 11.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39.

Affirm (NASDAQ:AFRM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 27th. The company reported $4.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $4.27. Affirm had a return on equity of 54.47% and a net margin of 45.29%.The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.20 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Affirm will post 1.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AFRM shares. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Affirm from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Affirm from $80.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Affirm from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Stephens raised their price objective on Affirm from $55.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Affirm from $117.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Affirm

In related news, COO Michael Linford sold 100,000 shares of Affirm stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.04, for a total transaction of $8,004,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 117,984 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,443,439.36. This trade represents a 45.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 11.01% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Corient Private Wealth LP raised its position in Affirm by 101.4% in the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 31,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,533,000 after buying an additional 15,642 shares during the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in Affirm during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,158,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Affirm by 7,715.3% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 29,932,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,440,977,000 after acquiring an additional 29,549,277 shares during the last quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP grew its stake in shares of Affirm by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP now owns 67,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,490,000 after acquiring an additional 2,970 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aspire Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Affirm by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Aspire Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,507 shares of the company’s stock worth $694,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares in the last quarter. 69.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Affirm News

Here are the key news stories impacting Affirm this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Affirm reported record quarterly profitability, with adjusted EPS of $4.62 versus estimates ranging from approximately $0.35 to $3.77. Revenue increased 33% year over year, while gross merchandise volume rose 36% and adjusted operating income climbed 49%. Affirm Q4 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management’s fiscal 2027 outlook was reportedly above consensus, supported by continued card adoption, merchant expansion and growing use of installment payments for smaller, everyday purchases. Credit performance remained stable, helping reduce concerns about consumer losses. Affirm Q4 Earnings Call Highlights Growth and Product Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Lower funding costs were another profit tailwind: financing costs fell 103 basis points to 5.8%, allowing margin expansion while the company maintained tight underwriting standards. Affirm Operational Results and Funding Costs
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts raised their targets following the results. JPMorgan lifted its target to $105 and maintained an overweight rating, BMO raised its target to $101 with an outperform rating, and RBC increased its target to $96. Analyst Price Target Changes
• Positive Sentiment: Affirm expanded its Shopify partnership into Australia through Shop Pay Installments, opening a new international growth channel and increasing the potential reach of its payment products. Affirm and Shopify Launch Shop Pay Installments in Australia
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity and a broader rebound in buy-now-pay-later stocks may be amplifying the move, but these signals do not necessarily reflect long-term fundamental demand.
• Negative Sentiment: The $4.62 EPS headline should be interpreted cautiously because it benefited from a one-time tax allowance release. Reported revenue of roughly $1.07 billion was also below some analyst estimates near $1.11 billion, while the stock’s elevated valuation leaves limited room for execution disappointments. Affirm Earnings Quality Analysis

About Affirm

Affirm Holdings, Inc is a financial technology company that provides point-of-sale consumer lending and payments solutions for online and in-store purchases. Its core product is a buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) platform that enables consumers to split purchases into fixed, transparent installment loans with no hidden fees. Affirm offers a range of financing options through merchant integrations, a consumer-facing mobile app and virtual card capabilities, and tools for merchants to offer alternative payment methods at checkout.