Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of iRobot Call Options (NASDAQ:IRBT)

Key Points

• Traders executed an unusual volume of options activity, buying 13,098 call options — about 43% above the average call volume for iRobot (IRBT).
• iRobot stock traded heavily (about 19.2 million shares vs. an average of 3.77 million) and fell to $2.99, leaving the company with a market cap near $95 million and trading close to its 52-week low.
• Despite beating quarterly estimates (EPS -$0.23 vs. -$0.65 and revenue $145.8M vs. $136M), iRobot still has negative margins and institutional sentiment is weak with a consensus rating of "Reduce".

iRobot Corporation (NASDAQ:IRBT - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 13,098 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 43% compared to the average volume of 9,174 call options.

iRobot Price Performance

iRobot stock traded down $0.40 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $2.99. 19,202,062 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,774,764. iRobot has a 1 year low of $1.40 and a 1 year high of $13.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.44 and a beta of 1.09. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $3.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.46.

iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported ($0.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.65) by $0.42. The company had revenue of $145.83 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $136.00 million. iRobot had a negative net margin of 38.16% and a negative return on equity of 2,446.70%. Research analysts forecast that iRobot will post -5.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IRBT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of iRobot in a research note on Monday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of iRobot in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of iRobot from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, iRobot presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce".

Hedge Funds Weigh In On iRobot

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of iRobot by 6.5% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 352,964 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,267,000 after buying an additional 21,645 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in iRobot in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Man Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of iRobot during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $790,000. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its position in iRobot by 67.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 568,257 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,040,000 after buying an additional 229,151 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its position in shares of iRobot by 27.2% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 440,280 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,581,000 after acquiring an additional 94,103 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.42% of the company's stock.

iRobot Company Profile

iRobot Corporation designs, builds, and sells robots and home innovation products in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, and internationally. The company offers floor care products, including Roomba floor vacuuming robots; Roomba accessories and consumables, such as the Clean Base Automatic Dirt Disposal, replacement dirt disposal bags for the Clean Base, filters, brushes, and batteries; Braava family of automatic floor mopping robots; and Braava accessories and consumables, which include cleaning solution, washable and disposable mopping pads, replacement tanks, and batteries, as well as subscription services.

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.