Manchester United Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:MANU)

Key Points

• Manchester United experienced a spike in options trading with a 171% increase in call options volume, totaling 3,541 options traded on Tuesday.
• The company's stock saw a decline of 8.8%, closing at $16.28, with a notable trading volume below its average.
• Analysts have changed their rating of Manchester United from "sell" to "hold," with a consensus target price of $23.00 for the stock.

Manchester United Ltd. (NYSE:MANU - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 3,541 call options on the stock. Thisisanincreaseof171% compared to the typical volume of 1,308 call options.

Manchester United Stock Performance

Shares of MANU stock traded down $0.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $15.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 245,031 shares, compared to its average volume of 222,763. The business has a fifty day moving average of $17.49 and a 200-day moving average of $15.52. Manchester United has a 52 week low of $12.05 and a 52 week high of $19.65. The company has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a PE ratio of -32.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.54.

Manchester United (NYSE:MANU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 6th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.33) by $0.29. Manchester United had a negative return on equity of 22.40% and a negative net margin of 10.09%.The business had revenue of $203.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $159.13 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.24) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Manchester United will post -0.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Manchester United from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $23.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Manchester United

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MANU. Ariel Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Manchester United by 5.2% during the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 9,024,434 shares of the company's stock worth $160,725,000 after acquiring an additional 449,105 shares in the last quarter. Infinitum Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Manchester United in the fourth quarter worth $6,420,000. Cooperman Leon G raised its position in shares of Manchester United by 9.1% in the first quarter. Cooperman Leon G now owns 2,839,737 shares of the company's stock worth $37,172,000 after buying an additional 238,032 shares in the last quarter. Michelson Medical Research Foundation Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Manchester United in the first quarter worth $2,618,000. Finally, Breach Inlet Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Manchester United by 28.6% in the first quarter. Breach Inlet Capital Management LLC now owns 854,946 shares of the company's stock worth $11,191,000 after buying an additional 190,090 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 23.34% of the company's stock.

About Manchester United

Manchester United plc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates a professional sports team in the United Kingdom. It operates Manchester United Football Club, a professional football club. The company develops marketing and sponsorship relationships with international and regional companies to leverage its brand.