Xerox Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:XRX)

Xerox Holdings Co. (NYSE:XRX) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 1,689 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 1,369% compared to the typical volume of 115 put options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on XRX. StockNews.com raised Xerox from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 26th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Xerox from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Xerox from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.50.

Xerox Stock Performance

Shares of XRX opened at $8.92 on Thursday. Xerox has a 52 week low of $8.02 and a 52 week high of $19.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $8.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -0.81 and a beta of 1.59.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information technology services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Xerox will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xerox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.21%. Xerox’s payout ratio is presently -9.06%.

Institutional Trading of Xerox

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in XRX. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Xerox during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Xerox by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,353 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,888 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Xerox by 938.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,304 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $800,000 after purchasing an additional 7,504 shares during the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its position in shares of Xerox by 45.0% during the 2nd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 9,346 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after buying an additional 2,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its stake in Xerox by 381.3% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,897 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 8,633 shares during the last quarter. 85.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.