Kohl’s Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:KSS)

Kohl’s Co. (NYSE:KSS) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Traders purchased 52,133 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 127% compared to the typical volume of 22,953 put options.

Kohl’s Stock Performance

NYSE KSS opened at $18.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 7.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.93. Kohl’s has a twelve month low of $17.68 and a twelve month high of $29.60. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.13. Kohl’s had a net margin of 1.66% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The business had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.69 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Kohl’s will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Kohl’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 11th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 11th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.58%. Kohl’s’s payout ratio is presently 80.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Kohl’s from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 29th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Kohl’s from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $25.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Kohl’s to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $18.00 to $17.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Kohl’s from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $19.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Kohl’s in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kohl’s

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Security National Bank purchased a new position in Kohl’s in the second quarter valued at $34,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Kohl’s by 97.1% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 948 shares during the period. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kohl’s in the second quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Kohl’s in the first quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC grew its holdings in Kohl’s by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 2,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.04% of the company’s stock.

About Kohl’s

Kohl's Corporation operates as an omnichannel retailer in the United States. It offers branded apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty, and home products through its stores and website. The company provides its products primarily under the brand names of Croft & Barrow, Jumping Beans, SO, Sonoma Goods for Life, and Tek Gear, as well as Food Network, LC Lauren Conrad, Nine West, and Simply Vera Vera Wang.