Foot Locker Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:FL)

Key Points

• Foot Locker experienced a significant surge in options trading, with investors purchasing 36,242 call options, marking an increase of 287% compared to the average daily volume.
• Insider activity indicates that CAO Giovanna Cipriano sold 22,383 shares of Foot Locker stock, reducing her ownership by 19.25%.
• Institutional investors have shown renewed interest in Foot Locker, with Norges Bank and Alliancebernstein both making notable acquisitions in the second quarter.

Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE:FL - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Traders bought 36,242 call options on the company. Thisisanincreaseofapproximately287% compared to the average volume of 9,361 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Franklin Bracken sold 14,922 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.50, for a total value of $365,589.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 213,496 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,230,652. The trade was a 6.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Giovanna Cipriano sold 22,383 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.90, for a total transaction of $557,336.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 93,895 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,337,985.50. This trade represents a 19.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Foot Locker

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Foot Locker by 250.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,468 shares of the athletic footwear retailer's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,764 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in shares of Foot Locker during the first quarter valued at $59,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of Foot Locker by 27.2% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,579 shares of the athletic footwear retailer's stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 980 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Foot Locker by 100,166.7% in the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,016 shares of the athletic footwear retailer's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 6,010 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Foot Locker in the first quarter valued at approximately $154,000.

Foot Locker Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Foot Locker stock traded down $0.05 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $24.11. 1,426,066 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,691,948. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $25.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.14. Foot Locker has a twelve month low of $11.00 and a twelve month high of $29.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 1.59. The stock has a market cap of $2.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.98, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.79.

Foot Locker (NYSE:FL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The athletic footwear retailer reported ($0.27) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. Foot Locker had a positive return on equity of 2.92% and a negative net margin of 4.90%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.05) earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Foot Locker will post 1.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Foot Locker from $20.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Foot Locker to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Foot Locker from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Zacks Research raised shares of Foot Locker from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Barclays cut shares of Foot Locker from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $21.33.

About Foot Locker

Foot Locker, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a footwear and apparel retailer in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and the Middle East. Its brand portfolio includes Foot Locker, a brand comprising sneakers and apparel; Kids Foot Locker, which offers athletic footwear, apparel, and accessories for children; and Champs Sports that operates as a mall-based specialty athletic footwear and apparel retailer.