Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ)

Key Points

• On Monday, iQIYI saw a substantial increase in call options trading, with investors purchasing 68,122 call options, a rise of approximately 369% compared to normal volume levels.
• iQIYI's stock rating was recently downgraded from "hold" to "sell" by Wall Street analysts, with a consensus target price of $2.39.
• During midday trading, iQIYI's stock price rose by 17.1% to $2.33, with trading volume significantly surpassing its average.

iQIYI, Inc. Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:IQ - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 68,122 call options on the company. Thisisanincreaseofapproximately369% compared to the typical daily volume of 14,525 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of iQIYI from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $2.39.

iQIYI Stock Up 17.1%

IQ stock traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $2.33. 107,706,350 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 28,481,973. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $2.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.26 and a beta of -0.14. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $1.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.95. iQIYI has a 1-year low of $1.50 and a 1-year high of $3.37.

iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $988.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.10 billion. iQIYI had a return on equity of 3.62% and a net margin of 1.02%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that iQIYI will post 0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of iQIYI

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of iQIYI in the first quarter valued at $30,000. DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of iQIYI in the first quarter valued at $33,000. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of iQIYI by 102.3% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 15,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 698,342 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of iQIYI in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Ping Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of iQIYI in the first quarter valued at $90,000. 52.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

iQIYI Company Profile

iQIYI, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides online entertainment video services in the People's Republic of China. It offers various products and services, including online video, online games, online literature, animations, and other products. The company operates a platform that provides a collection of internet video content, such as professionally produced content licensed from professional content providers and self-produced content.

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