Nikola Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:NKLA)

Nikola Co. (NASDAQ:NKLA) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 107,074 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 101% compared to the average volume of 53,209 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nikola

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NKLA. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Nikola by 121.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 9,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 5,190 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Nikola in the second quarter worth $138,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in Nikola by 84.3% in the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 45,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 20,723 shares during the period. One Wealth Management Investment & Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Nikola in the third quarter worth $110,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Nikola in the second quarter worth $215,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 37.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on NKLA shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Nikola from $14.00 to $10.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Nikola from $12.00 to $4.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Bryan, Garnier & Co lowered Nikola from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on Nikola from $10.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.00.

Nikola Price Performance

NKLA stock opened at $0.85 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.44 million, a PE ratio of -0.06 and a beta of 1.99. Nikola has a one year low of $0.76 and a one year high of $34.50.

Nikola (NASDAQ:NKLA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported ($2.75) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.24) by ($0.51). Nikola had a negative return on equity of 95.73% and a negative net margin of 840.44%. The company had revenue of $25.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $37.23 million. Nikola’s revenue for the quarter was up 1382.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Nikola Company Profile

Nikola Corporation operates as a technology innovator and integrator that develops energy and transportation solutions in the United States and internationally. The company operates in truck and energy units. It commercializes battery electric vehicles (BEV) and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV) to the trucking sector.