Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of AMC Entertainment Call Options (NYSE:AMC)

AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:AMC - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors acquired 110,089 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 30% compared to the typical daily volume of 84,442 call options.

AMC Entertainment Trading Up 11.7%

Shares of AMC traded up $0.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $3.35. 34,651,884 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,307,746. AMC Entertainment has a 1-year low of $2.45 and a 1-year high of $5.76. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $3.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.16. The company has a market cap of $1.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.42 and a beta of 1.43.

AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.58) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.61) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $862.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $983.23 million. The business's quarterly revenue was down 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.62) earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that AMC Entertainment will post -1.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on AMC. Roth Mkm lowered their price target on AMC Entertainment from $3.25 to $3.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wedbush raised AMC Entertainment from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $3.00 to $4.00 in a research note on Friday. Citigroup reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $2.60 target price (up previously from $2.30) on shares of AMC Entertainment in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, B. Riley initiated coverage on shares of AMC Entertainment in a research report on Friday, May 16th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $3.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $4.26.

Institutional Trading of AMC Entertainment

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in shares of AMC Entertainment by 51.3% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 282,815 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,126,000 after purchasing an additional 95,834 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in AMC Entertainment by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,854,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $146,681,000 after buying an additional 1,558,554 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of AMC Entertainment by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,318,281 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,207,000 after acquiring an additional 370,408 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of AMC Entertainment during the fourth quarter worth about $289,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AMC Entertainment during the fourth quarter worth about $1,191,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.80% of the company's stock.

About AMC Entertainment

AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the theatrical exhibition business. It owns, operates, or has interests in theatres in the United States and Europe. The company was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Leawood, Kansas.