Investors Purchase High Volume of Sunrun Call Options (NASDAQ:RUN)

Key Points

• Sunrun saw unusually high call-option activity, with 44,803 calls purchased—70% above its average daily volume—while shares rose 10.3% to $8.25.
• Institutional investors increased their exposure substantially, and funds now own 91.69% of Sunrun’s stock. Recent notable buyers included Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon, Robeco Schweiz, Amundi, and Deutsche Bank.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: 12 analysts rate the stock Buy, seven Hold, and two Sell, producing a consensus “Hold” rating and a $14.39 average price target. Executives also sold shares to cover tax withholding tied to vested equity awards.

Sunrun Inc. (NASDAQ:RUN - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors purchased 44,803 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 70% compared to the average daily volume of 26,393 call options.

Insider Activity

In related news, CRO Paul S. Dickson sold 15,837 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.76, for a total value of $122,895.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive directly owned 823,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,391,927.52. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Mary Powell sold 24,335 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.76, for a total transaction of $188,839.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,087,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,436,672. The trade was a 2.19% 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 68,719 shares of company stock valued at $533,277. Company insiders own 3.55% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Sunrun in the second quarter worth about $29,953,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Sunrun during the 2nd quarter worth about $18,120,000. Robeco Schweiz AG grew its position in shares of Sunrun by 28.5% during the 3rd quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 5,478,228 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $42,566,000 after acquiring an additional 1,214,548 shares during the period. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Sunrun by 56.3% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 3,300,626 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $44,798,000 after purchasing an additional 1,188,564 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in shares of Sunrun in the 2nd quarter valued at about $12,483,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.69% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on RUN shares. Roth Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Sunrun in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Sunrun from $18.00 to $14.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Sunrun from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Sunrun from $22.00 to $17.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Sunrun from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $14.39.

Sunrun Stock Up 10.3%

Shares of RUN stock traded up $0.77 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $8.25. The stock had a trading volume of 15,218,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,233,322. Sunrun has a 12-month low of $6.78 and a 12-month high of $21.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.34, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm's 50-day moving average is $8.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.57 and a beta of 2.44.

Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The energy company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $869.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $746.87 million. Sunrun had a return on equity of 9.59% and a net margin of 11.59%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 52.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.07 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Sunrun will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sunrun Company Profile

Sunrun Inc is a residential clean-energy company that designs, sells, installs, owns and maintains home solar energy systems. The company provides rooftop solar panels and related equipment through purchase and financing options, as well as subscription-based solar-as-a-service arrangements under which customers pay for the electricity their systems produce.

Sunrun also offers home energy storage through its Brightbox battery product. These systems can store solar-generated electricity for use when solar production is unavailable and may provide backup power during grid outages.

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