Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Amplify Energy (NYSE:AMPY)

Key Points

• Unusually high options activity: Investors purchased 4,098 call options on Amplify Energy, roughly 770% above the typical volume of 471 contracts.
• Stock performance and earnings: AMPY shares rose to $4.96 on significantly above-average volume, but the company reported a quarterly loss of $0.93 per share, missing estimates by $0.99, while revenue also came in slightly below forecasts.
• Mixed analyst sentiment: Benchmark maintained a “Buy” rating while lowering its price target to $9, but other ratings remained negative; MarketBeat lists a consensus “Hold” rating and a $9 price target. An insider also increased his holdings by purchasing 25,000 shares.

Amplify Energy Corp. (NYSE:AMPY - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Investors acquired 4,098 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 770% compared to the typical volume of 471 call options.

Amplify Energy Stock Performance

Shares of AMPY stock traded up $0.57 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $4.96. The company had a trading volume of 2,972,985 shares, compared to its average volume of 826,059. Amplify Energy has a 12-month low of $3.65 and a 12-month high of $6.79. The company has a market capitalization of $205.00 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.03 and a beta of -0.17. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $4.08 and a 200-day moving average of $5.05.

Amplify Energy (NYSE:AMPY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The company reported ($0.93) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by ($0.99). Amplify Energy had a negative return on equity of 3.04% and a net margin of 10.62%.The company had revenue of $37.46 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.11 million.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AMPY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark lowered their price target on Amplify Energy from $11.00 to $9.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Amplify Energy from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Amplify Energy from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Amplify Energy has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $9.00.

Insider Activity

In other Amplify Energy news, insider James Frew bought 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $3.95 per share, for a total transaction of $98,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 216,859 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $856,593.05. This represents a 13.03% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 8.99% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Amplify Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AMPY. Lakewood Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Amplify Energy by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 34,665 shares of the company's stock valued at $158,000 after acquiring an additional 2,386 shares during the period. Live Oak Investment Partners purchased a new stake in Amplify Energy during the second quarter worth about $207,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Amplify Energy by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 108,768 shares of the company's stock worth $497,000 after purchasing an additional 2,663 shares in the last quarter. PW Advisors LLC FL acquired a new stake in shares of Amplify Energy during the second quarter worth about $274,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Amplify Energy by 31.7% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 28,798 shares of the company's stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 6,935 shares in the last quarter. 42.84% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amplify Energy Company Profile

Amplify Energy Corp NYSE: AMPY is an independent upstream energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas resources in the United States. The company's operations emphasize both conventional and unconventional plays, combining onshore and offshore activities. Amplify Energy applies advanced reservoir management techniques and disciplined capital allocation to identify and develop reserves with attractive economics while managing commodity price exposure through targeted risk strategies.

The company's asset portfolio is concentrated along the U.S.

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