Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Macy’s (NYSE:M)

Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M) saw some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock traders bought 20,773 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 24% compared to the average daily volume of 16,715 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Macy’s

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Macy’s in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Macy’s by 282.7% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,685 shares during the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in Macy’s in the third quarter valued at $39,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Macy’s during the first quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Macy’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $57,000. Institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Macy’s Stock Performance

NYSE M traded up $1.10 on Friday, hitting $16.17. 4,813,607 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,248,471. The company has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a PE ratio of 24.92 and a beta of 2.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The business’s fifty day moving average is $15.42 and its 200 day moving average is $16.87. Macy’s has a 52 week low of $14.06 and a 52 week high of $22.10.

Macy’s (NYSE:M) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.23. Macy’s had a net margin of 0.80% and a return on equity of 23.14%. The firm had revenue of $4.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Macy’s will post 2.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Macy’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.1737 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.30%. Macy’s’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 107.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Argus raised shares of Macy’s to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $21.00 price objective on shares of Macy’s in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. StockNews.com started coverage on Macy’s in a report on Sunday, November 10th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Macy’s from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.43.

Macy’s Company Profile

Macy's, Inc, an omni-channel retail organization, operates stores, websites, and mobile applications in the United States. The company sells a range of merchandise, such as apparel and accessories for men, women, and kids; cosmetics; home furnishings; and other consumer goods under the Macy's, Bloomingdale's, and bluemercury brands.