Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Put Options on Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN)

Key Points

• Sunrun Inc. saw a significant increase in put options trading with 145,234 options purchased, marking a 184% rise from the average volume.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.07, surpassing the consensus estimate of -$0.18, alongside an 8.7% year-over-year revenue increase.
• Insiders have sold 266,956 shares of Sunrun stock valued at approximately $4.93 million over the last quarter, which has led to a decrease in their positions.

Sunrun Inc. (NASDAQ:RUN - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 145,234 put options on the company. This is an increase of 184% compared to the average volume of 51,075 put options.

Sunrun Stock Performance

NASDAQ RUN traded up $2.05 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $21.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,082,679 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,299,330. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $18.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.65. The firm has a market cap of $4.87 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.81 and a beta of 2.41. Sunrun has a 52 week low of $5.38 and a 52 week high of $22.44.

Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The energy company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by $1.25. The company had revenue of $569.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $555.42 million. Sunrun had a positive return on equity of 14.19% and a negative net margin of 120.59%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Sunrun will post -0.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jeanna Steele sold 21,037 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.25, for a total value of $425,999.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 366,264 shares in the company, valued at $7,416,846. This trade represents a 5.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Alan Ferber sold 10,927 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.24, for a total value of $122,819.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 54,947 shares of the company's stock, valued at $617,604.28. This trade represents a 16.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 266,956 shares of company stock valued at $4,931,665 over the last quarter. Insiders own 3.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RUN. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Sunrun by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,194,915 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $20,660,000 after buying an additional 63,284 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in Sunrun by 36.8% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 13,807 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $239,000 after buying an additional 3,717 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in Sunrun by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 64,215 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,110,000 after buying an additional 1,540 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Sunrun by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 66,615 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $1,152,000 after buying an additional 10,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Sunrun in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,297,000. 91.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RUN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Sunrun from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $11.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Sunrun from $13.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Sunrun from $8.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Mizuho raised their price objective on Sunrun from $13.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Sunrun from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sunrun presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.60.

Sunrun Company Profile

Sunrun Inc designs, develops, installs, sells, owns, and maintains residential solar energy systems in the United States. It also sells solar energy systems and products, such as panels and racking; and solar leads generated to customers. In addition, the company offers battery storage along with solar energy systems; and sells services to commercial developers through multi-family and new homes.

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