Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Edison International Call Options (NYSE:EIX)

Edison International (NYSE:EIX - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Traders purchased 5,438 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 84% compared to the average volume of 2,956 call options.

Edison International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EIX traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $52.57. 2,920,079 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,317,305. Edison International has a fifty-two week low of $47.73 and a fifty-two week high of $88.77. The firm has a market cap of $20.23 billion, a PE ratio of 7.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.75. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $57.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Edison International (NYSE:EIX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.29 billion. Edison International had a return on equity of 13.21% and a net margin of 16.84%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Edison International will post 4.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Edison International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be given a dividend of $0.8275 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 7th. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.30%. Edison International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.95%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Edison International

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Arvest Investments Inc. bought a new stake in Edison International during the second quarter worth approximately $857,000. Kera Capital Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Edison International in the second quarter valued at $359,000. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs acquired a new stake in shares of Edison International during the 1st quarter valued at $2,045,000. Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of Edison International by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 546,934 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,225,000 after acquiring an additional 23,501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Edison International by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 351,524 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $20,712,000 after acquiring an additional 31,488 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.95% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on EIX. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Edison International from $52.00 to $51.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Edison International from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Edison International from $75.00 to $71.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Wolfe Research lowered Edison International from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Edison International in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Edison International has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.82.

Edison International Company Profile

Edison International, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation and distribution of electric power. The company supplies and delivers electricity to approximately 50,000 square mile area of southern California to residential, commercial, industrial, public authorities, agricultural, and other sectors.