Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on Xerox (NYSE:XRX)

Xerox Holdings Co. (NYSE:XRX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 1,689 put options on the company. This is an increase of 1,369% compared to the average daily volume of 115 put options.

Xerox Price Performance

XRX opened at $5.56 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.61, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $4.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.24. Xerox has a one year low of $3.45 and a one year high of $14.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $699.31 million, a P/E ratio of -0.52 and a beta of 1.75.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The information technology services provider reported ($0.06) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by ($0.03). Xerox had a negative net margin of 21.24% and a positive return on equity of 7.57%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.06 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Xerox will post 1.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xerox Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.99%. Xerox's payout ratio is presently -4.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Xerox from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $9.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of XRX. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in Xerox by 2,035.4% during the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,682,002 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $17,784,000 after acquiring an additional 3,509,574 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Xerox by 397.5% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,378,215 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $11,618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101,171 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Xerox by 2,846.8% in the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,128,973 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $9,517,000 after purchasing an additional 1,090,661 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Xerox in the first quarter valued at about $4,765,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Xerox by 348.8% in the first quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 953,827 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $4,607,000 after buying an additional 741,297 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.36% of the company's stock.

About Xerox

Xerox Holdings Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a workplace technology company that integrates hardware, services, and software for enterprises in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Print and Other; and FITTLE.

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