Traders Purchase Large Volume of Put Options on Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ:KDP)

Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. (NASDAQ:KDP - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 14,279 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 323% compared to the typical volume of 3,378 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Keurig Dr Pepper from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Keurig Dr Pepper from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, HSBC began coverage on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper in a report on Friday, December 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $36.27.

Keurig Dr Pepper Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of KDP stock traded down $0.36 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $30.65. 7,752,490 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,754,249. The stock has a market cap of $42.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.66. Keurig Dr Pepper has a 52-week low of $27.66 and a 52-week high of $35.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The stock's fifty day moving average is $30.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.05.

Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ:KDP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.01. Keurig Dr Pepper had a net margin of 14.72% and a return on equity of 9.93%. The firm had revenue of $3.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.92 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Keurig Dr Pepper will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

Keurig Dr Pepper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 29th will be issued a $0.215 dividend. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Keurig Dr Pepper's payout ratio is 55.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Holdings B.V. Jab sold 51,956,522 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.90, for a total value of $1,501,543,485.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 331,487,357 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,579,984,617.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Robert James Gamgort acquired 171,821 shares of Keurig Dr Pepper stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $29.10 per share, with a total value of $4,999,991.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 3,179,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,535,584.70. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Holdings B.V. Jab sold 51,956,522 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.90, for a total transaction of $1,501,543,485.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 331,487,357 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,579,984,617.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 100,012,132 shares of company stock valued at $2,890,354,861. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Keurig Dr Pepper

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Keurig Dr Pepper in the 1st quarter valued at $264,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its position in shares of Keurig Dr Pepper by 14.6% in the first quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 93,607 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,871,000 after buying an additional 11,917 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Keurig Dr Pepper by 3.9% in the first quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 183,252 shares of the company's stock worth $5,620,000 after buying an additional 6,917 shares in the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd grew its position in shares of Keurig Dr Pepper by 2.8% in the first quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 505,101 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,491,000 after purchasing an additional 13,779 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alaska Permanent Fund Corp increased its holdings in shares of Keurig Dr Pepper by 0.9% in the first quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 342,669 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,510,000 after purchasing an additional 3,067 shares during the last quarter. 85.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Keurig Dr Pepper Company Profile

Keurig Dr Pepper Inc owns, manufactures, and distributors beverages and single serve brewing systems in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S. Refreshment Beverages, U.S. Coffee, and International. The U.S. Refreshment Beverages segment manufactures and distributes branded concentrates, syrup, and finished beverages.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.