Xerox Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:XRX)

Xerox Holdings Co. (NYSE:XRX) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors purchased 1,689 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,369% compared to the average daily volume of 115 put options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

XRX has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Xerox from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Xerox from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Xerox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $9.50.

Xerox Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:XRX opened at $9.38 on Thursday. Xerox has a 52 week low of $8.02 and a 52 week high of $19.78. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $8.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.85 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information technology services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analyst estimates of $1.63 billion. Xerox had a positive return on equity of 6.60% and a negative net margin of 21.31%. Xerox’s revenue was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Xerox will post 1.12 EPS for the current year.

Xerox Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Xerox’s payout ratio is currently -9.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xerox

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Xerox by 33.2% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 16,969,127 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $176,140,000 after buying an additional 4,228,806 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Xerox by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,808,775 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $29,161,000 after purchasing an additional 62,947 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Xerox by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,719,607 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $17,850,000 after purchasing an additional 107,580 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Xerox by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,102,688 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $9,296,000 after purchasing an additional 69,182 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Xerox by 9.5% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 796,609 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $8,269,000 after purchasing an additional 69,183 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.36% of the company’s stock.

Xerox Company Profile

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.