Investors Buy High Volume of Call Options on NioCorp Developments (NASDAQ:NB)

Key Points

• On Wednesday, NioCorp Developments experienced a significant surge in call options trading, with 7,435 options purchased, marking a 558% increase from the average daily volume.
• NioCorp's stock price rose $0.10 to reach $3.94 during midday trading, with a substantial trading volume of over 7.4 million shares.
• Analysts have set mixed price targets for NioCorp, with HC Wainwright lowering their target to $4.00, while Maxim Group raised theirs to $5.00, both maintaining a "buy" rating.

NioCorp Developments Ltd. (NASDAQ:NB - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders acquired 7,435 call options on the stock. Thisrepresentsanincreaseofapproximately558% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,130 call options.

NioCorp Developments Stock Up 11.8%

NASDAQ:NB traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $4.74. 9,249,004 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,062,345. NioCorp Developments has a 1 year low of $1.27 and a 1 year high of $4.87. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $2.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.51. The company has a market cap of $278.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.94 and a beta of -0.35.

NioCorp Developments (NASDAQ:NB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 11th. The company reported ($0.16) EPS for the quarter. Equities analysts forecast that NioCorp Developments will post -0.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on NB. HC Wainwright decreased their price target on NioCorp Developments from $4.25 to $4.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Maxim Group boosted their price target on NioCorp Developments from $4.00 to $5.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NioCorp Developments

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NioCorp Developments during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $62,000. Creative Planning bought a new position in shares of NioCorp Developments during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey bought a new position in NioCorp Developments during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in NioCorp Developments by 2,376.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 644,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,501,000 after acquiring an additional 618,170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC bought a new position in NioCorp Developments during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Institutional investors own 4.03% of the company's stock.

NioCorp Developments Company Profile

NioCorp Developments Ltd. engages in the exploration and development of mineral deposits in North America. It owns and develops the Elk Creek niobium/scandium/titanium project that owns one 226.43-acre parcel of land and associated mineral rights, and an additional 40 acres of mineral rights, as well as an optioned land package that covers an area of 1,396 acres located in Johnson County, southeast Nebraska.