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

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

Institutional Trading of Xerox

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Xerox by 397.5% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,378,215 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $11,618,000 after buying an additional 1,101,171 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in Xerox by 2,846.8% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,128,973 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $9,517,000 after purchasing an additional 1,090,661 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new position in Xerox in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,101,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Xerox in the 4th quarter worth about $3,067,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Xerox by 164.8% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 546,536 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $4,607,000 after buying an additional 340,168 shares during the last quarter. 85.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Xerox from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xerox currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $9.50.

Xerox Stock Performance

Shares of Xerox stock opened at $4.91 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $615.13 million, a PE ratio of -0.46 and a beta of 1.66. Xerox has a 12 month low of $4.72 and a 12 month high of $18.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.61. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $8.52.

Xerox Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.18%. Xerox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -4.66%.

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.