Amer Sports Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:AS)

Key Points

• Amer Sports saw unusually high options activity, with 38,585 call options traded—about 244% above its average daily call volume.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $44.77; targets cited ranged from $42 to $64.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, including $0.22 EPS versus the $0.11 estimate and revenue growth of 32.1% year over year, while shares recently traded at $28.05.

Amer Sports, Inc. (NYSE:AS - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock traders purchased 38,585 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 244% compared to the average daily volume of 11,213 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on AS shares. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Amer Sports in a research note on Monday, September 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $43.00 price objective on Amer Sports in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Amer Sports from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Amer Sports from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of Amer Sports in a research report on Friday, September 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.77.

Amer Sports Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AS traded up $0.60 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $28.05. The stock had a trading volume of 2,320,948 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,056,201. Amer Sports has a twelve month low of $26.10 and a twelve month high of $42.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business's fifty day moving average is $30.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.21. The company has a market cap of $15.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.50, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 2.04.

Amer Sports (NYSE:AS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 17th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.11. Amer Sports had a net margin of 7.35% and a return on equity of 11.18%. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.03 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 32.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Amer Sports will post 1.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Wen-Chang Chen sold 117,461 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.60, for a total transaction of $3,124,462.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 434,855 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,567,143. This represents a 21.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew E. Page sold 2,022 shares of Amer Sports stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.63, for a total transaction of $57,889.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 6,575 shares in the company, valued at $188,242.25. This trade represents a 23.52% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Amer Sports

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Aspex Management HK Ltd lifted its position in shares of Amer Sports by 27.9% during the 4th quarter. Aspex Management HK Ltd now owns 7,593,627 shares of the company's stock worth $283,622,000 after buying an additional 1,658,536 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its stake in Amer Sports by 1,306.7% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 5,214,439 shares of the company's stock worth $194,759,000 after acquiring an additional 4,843,742 shares in the last quarter. Avala Global LP raised its stake in Amer Sports by 38.8% during the fourth quarter. Avala Global LP now owns 4,637,149 shares of the company's stock worth $173,198,000 after acquiring an additional 1,297,200 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Amer Sports by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 3,372,726 shares of the company's stock valued at $125,971,000 after acquiring an additional 172,518 shares during the period. Finally, Temasek Holdings Private Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Amer Sports by 42.1% during the first quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 3,665,157 shares of the company's stock valued at $120,657,000 after acquiring an additional 1,086,616 shares during the period. 40.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amer Sports Company Profile

Amer Sports, Inc NYSE: AS is a global sporting and outdoor goods company that develops, manufactures and markets equipment, apparel, footwear and accessories for consumers and athletes. Its portfolio spans outdoor, winter sports, racquet sports and fitness categories, with products sold through wholesale partners, company-operated stores and digital channels.

The company's brand portfolio includes Arc'teryx, known for technical outdoor apparel and equipment; Salomon, which offers trail-running, hiking and winter-sports products; Wilson, a manufacturer of tennis, padel, baseball, basketball and other sporting equipment; Atomic and Armada, which focus on snow sports; and Peak Performance, an outdoor and ski apparel brand.

Amer Sports serves customers internationally across North America, Europe, Asia and other global markets.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.