Kohl's Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:KSS)

Key Points

• Investors showed significant interest in Kohl's, purchasing 103,167 call options, marking a 113% increase from the average trading volume.
• Kohl's reported earnings per share of $0.56 for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, but their revenue of $3.35 billion fell short of forecasts.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 3.0%, with the ex-dividend date set for September 10th.

Kohl's Corporation (NYSE:KSS - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors acquired 103,167 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 113% compared to the typical daily volume of 48,545 call options.

Kohl's Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KSS traded down $0.84 during trading on Friday, hitting $15.30. 5,778,793 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,165,231. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $12.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $9.81. The company has a market cap of $1.71 billion, a PE ratio of 8.27 and a beta of 1.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Kohl's has a 12-month low of $6.04 and a 12-month high of $21.39.

Kohl's (NYSE:KSS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.37 billion. Kohl's had a return on equity of 4.62% and a net margin of 1.31%.The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 EPS. Kohl's has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.500-0.800 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Kohl's will post 1.3 EPS for the current year.

Kohl's Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Kohl's's payout ratio is 27.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KSS. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Kohl's from $8.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Kohl's from $9.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Kohl's from $8.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Barclays raised their target price on Kohl's from $5.00 to $8.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Kohl's from $9.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $12.46.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kohl's

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kohl's by 26.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 32,998 shares of the company's stock worth $280,000 after acquiring an additional 7,003 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Kohl's by 98.4% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 162,622 shares of the company's stock worth $1,379,000 after purchasing an additional 80,642 shares during the last quarter. Marex Group plc acquired a new position in shares of Kohl's during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $284,000. Caxton Associates LLP raised its position in shares of Kohl's by 2,958.8% during the 2nd quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 621,862 shares of the company's stock worth $5,273,000 after purchasing an additional 601,532 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in shares of Kohl's by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 379,034 shares of the company's stock worth $3,214,000 after purchasing an additional 26,056 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.04% of the company's stock.

About Kohl's

Kohl's Corporation operates as an omnichannel retailer in the United States. It offers branded apparel, footwear, accessories, beauty, and home products through its stores and website. The company provides its products primarily under the brand names of Croft & Barrow, Jumping Beans, SO, Sonoma Goods for Life, and Tek Gear, as well as Food Network, LC Lauren Conrad, Nine West, and Simply Vera Vera Wang.