Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:ERIC)

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) (NASDAQ:ERIC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 2,832 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 91% compared to the average daily volume of 1,484 put options.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) Trading Down 1.2 %

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) stock traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $5.03. The stock had a trading volume of 19,465,573 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,580,389. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $5.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.75 billion, a PE ratio of -6.89 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.20. Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson has a twelve month low of $4.33 and a twelve month high of $6.36.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) (NASDAQ:ERIC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 22nd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.02. Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) had a negative net margin of 9.82% and a positive return on equity of 11.77%. The firm had revenue of $6.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.20 EPS. Analysts expect that Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson will post 0.42 EPS for the current year.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th were paid a dividend of $0.1293 per share. This is an increase from Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)'s previous dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 4th. Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)'s payout ratio is -23.29%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. First Affirmative Financial Network increased its stake in shares of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 9.4% in the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 26,354 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $145,000 after buying an additional 2,268 shares during the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 17.5% in the first quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,547 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 2,609 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 107,824 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $679,000 after acquiring an additional 2,753 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its position in Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 31.2% in the third quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 13,457 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 3,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) by 25.6% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 17,673 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 3,606 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 7.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ERIC. Barclays cut shares of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 19th. UBS Group lowered Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, TheStreet raised shares of Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) from a "d+" rating to a "c-" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $5.90.

About Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ)

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ), together with its subsidiaries, provides mobile connectivity solutions for telcom operators and enterprise customers in various sectors in North America, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, North East Asia, South East Asia, Oceania, and India. It operates in four segments: Networks; Cloud Software and Services; Enterprise; and Other.