Iamgold Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:IAG)

Key Points

• Stock traders purchased a significant volume of Iamgold call options, totaling 9,096, which marks a 246% increase from the average daily count.
• Iamgold's shares closed at $9.98, with a recent trading volume of over 5 million shares, reflecting a market capitalization of $5.74 billion.
• The company's quarterly earnings report indicated an EPS of $0.13, missing analyst expectations, and it has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $8.53.

Iamgold Corporation (NYSE:IAG - Get Free Report) TSE: IMG was the target of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders bought 9,096 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 246% compared to the typical volume of 2,626 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

IAG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research cut Iamgold from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Iamgold to a "hold" rating and set a $8.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Iamgold from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $9.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Wednesday. CIBC reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Iamgold in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, National Bankshares reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Iamgold in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $10.13.

Iamgold Price Performance

Iamgold stock traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $11.18. The stock had a trading volume of 12,630,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,862,949. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.04, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.21. Iamgold has a 1-year low of $4.44 and a 1-year high of $11.36. The stock's fifty day moving average is $8.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.21.

Iamgold (NYSE:IAG - Get Free Report) TSE: IMG last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The mining company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $587.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $663.21 million. Iamgold had a return on equity of 8.54% and a net margin of 40.61%. As a group, analysts predict that Iamgold will post 0.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Iamgold

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Iamgold in the 1st quarter worth about $647,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Iamgold during the 1st quarter valued at about $94,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Iamgold by 28.0% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 75,250 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 16,475 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Iamgold in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $107,000. Finally, Amundi raised its position in shares of Iamgold by 55.7% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 5,343,801 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $34,895,000 after purchasing an additional 1,911,840 shares in the last quarter. 47.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Iamgold

IAMGOLD Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an intermediate gold producer and developer in Canada and Burkina Faso. It owns 100% interest in the Westwood project that covers an area of 1,925 hectare and located in Quebec; a 60% interest in the Côté gold project, which covers an area of 596 square kilometer located in Ontario, Canada; and a 90% interests in the Essakane project that covers an area of 274,000 square kilometer situated in Burkina Faso.